Where are Rose and Bernard?

[MrGermsChoice]

Noticed allusion to it in the article on the podcast (how Boone would help Nikki and not Rose, or something)- did these two leave the show or something?  Are we to draw something from their not even being given a token appearance in weeks?

[matahari]

They were at least mentioned as Boone was looking for a pen to save Rose, which means the're still on the Island. I would love to see them again but I think the producers have said its a mere casting issue.

[MrGermsChoice]

but I think the producers have said its a mere casting issue.

Wait, where was this said?  Does this mean they're no longer with the show or something?

[AstroJones]

Where are Rose and Bernard?  Why they're on the beach, doing laundry, having romantic dates on the beach, and just being generally happy that they are alive and together.  Sort of like the 40 or so other survivors we never see.

I agree, I think this is just a casting issue.  If you remember, Rose disappeared during the middle of the first season because she was doing a broadway play in New York.  

[WhatThe]

They were at least mentioned as Boone was looking for a pen to save Rose, which means the're still on the Island. I would love to see them again but I think the producers have said its a mere casting issue.

What does "mere casting issue" mean?

[AstroJones]

but I think the producers have said its a mere casting issue.

Wait, where was this said?  Does this mean they're no longer with the show or something?

They've never been regulars on the show.  They are just contracted when needed for the number of episodes they need them.  So if they have other projects, then there are casting issues and they can't be on lost.

[WhatThe]

Where are Rose and Bernard?  Why they're on the beach, doing laundry, having romantic dates on the beach, and just being generally happy that they are alive and together.  Sort of like the 40 or so other survivors we never see.

But those "40 or so other survivors we never see" were never given storylines or backstories, nor did the writers ask the audience to invest some emotion and thought/concern into them. Demoting them to extra status doesn't sit well with me on several levels.

[CastawayCayley]

You can't have every episode feature every character. There is so much going on in the other plots that it would be too confusing to spend 6 minutes on Jack in otherville, 5 minutes on Charlie and Claire, 4 minutes on Sun and Jin, etc. The story lines would really take forever to get through, or worse, they'd never get as intricate as they are now. They have a main cast and a secondary cast, and obligating those secondary actors to stay in Hawaii, to limit there ability to make money on other projects, just so you can see them walk by on the beach or say hi to Hurley at the kitchen, isnt fair to them. At some point they will write them a story, fly them in, shoot that epi and maybe some scenes for another one, and then let them go home.

[WhatThe]

You can't have every episode feature every character. There is so much going on in the other plots that it would be too confusing to spend 6 minutes on Jack in otherville, 5 minutes on Charlie and Claire, 4 minutes on Sun and Jin, etc. The story lines would really take forever to get through, or worse, they'd never get as intricate as they are now. They have a main cast and a secondary cast, and obligating those secondary actors to stay in Hawaii, to limit there ability to make money on other projects, just so you can see them walk by on the beach or say hi to Hurley at the kitchen, isnt fair to them. At some point they will write them a story, fly them in, shoot that epi and maybe some scenes for another one, and then let them go home.

That's why scenes are shot well in advance. Need Rose and Bernard to have a few scenes with Hurley in one episode, while having them make a few comments about Nikki and Paulo in another episode 3 months later? Shoot both scenes in the same week, then send the actors on their way to do their own things. Simple.

[CastawayCayley]

They dont have the whole season written out before the show starts filming. This show was probably being written while we were watching the mini season in the fall. I had a friend who interviewed to write for a TV show, and he spent a week with the writers to see how it's done. They may only have 4 or 5 epis ready to shoot before filming starts, and often they're writing each episode only weeks before that same epi is shot. They may not know when they have the actors available what the heck they'll be filming in 3 months.

[PrincessLeia]

Rose was briefly seen during last night's epi.

[WhatThe]

They dont have the whole season written out before the show starts filming. This show was probably being written while we were watching the mini season in the fall. I had a friend who interviewed to write for a TV show, and he spent a week with the writers to see how it's done. They may only have 4 or 5 epis ready to shoot before filming starts, and often they're writing each episode only weeks before that same epi is shot. They may not know when they have the actors available what the heck they'll be filming in 3 months.

This will depend on what type of show it is...for instance, a sitcom can be written on the fly easier than something as convoluted as Lost, since storylines don't have to fit together perfectly to form an overall cohesive whole. Episodes can exist independent of each other. Unless the speculation that the writers on Lost really ARE making it up as they go is correct lol...in which case it would explain the apparent numerous logic flaws that seem to exist. Either way, it does not take a momentuous amount of preplanning and organization to film scenes ahead of time on a series like this. Having Bernard and Rose not appear at all this season was not an unavoidable obstacle.

[CastawayCayley]

They dont have the whole season written out before the show starts filming. This show was probably being written while we were watching the mini season in the fall. I had a friend who interviewed to write for a TV show, and he spent a week with the writers to see how it's done. They may only have 4 or 5 epis ready to shoot before filming starts, and often they're writing each episode only weeks before that same epi is shot. They may not know when they have the actors available what the heck they'll be filming in 3 months.

This will depend on what type of show it is...for instance, a sitcom can be written on the fly easier than something as convoluted as Lost, since storylines don't have to fit together perfectly to form an overall cohesive whole. Episodes can exist independent of each other. Unless the speculation that the writers on Lost really ARE making it up as they go is correct lol...in which case it would explain the apparent numerous logic flaws that seem to exist. Either way, it does not take a momentuous amount of preplanning and organization to film scenes ahead of time on a series like this. Having Bernard and Rose not appear at all this season was not an unavoidable obstacle.

It was probably just a judgement call. Maybe they felt other stories warranted more time and development. Maybe they have a big plan to spin off a new show called "Rose and Bernard." Maybe the Bernard/Rose stories didnt test as well or had lower ratings. Maybe the actors are busy in other projects. Ultimately, what difference does it make? 

[WhatThe]

Btw, on the topic of whether or not the writers/creators of Lost are thinking well in advance or doing it all on the fly, They screwed up with Sawyer big time concerning his looks right after the crash. In the pilot episode, they have him with MUCH shorter hair and no facial stubble after the plane crashes...yet in flashbacks they show him with VERY long hair and a face full of stubble mere hours before boarding the plane. Now unless Sawyer got a complimentary shave and haircut in midflight by one of the flight attendants, that's a very noticeable screw up lol. And in last nights episode, they "flashback" to right after the crash again...and Sawyer's hair is NOW long and pulled back in a quasi-ponytail lol.

Preplanning eliminates things like that, because they can film Sawyer's flashbacks around the same time they're filming the first few episodes. It doesn't appear as if they thought ahead like that, though...which points, to me anyway, that they didn't think ahead concerning Rose and Bernard (or Walt for that matter).

[WhatThe]

They dont have the whole season written out before the show starts filming. This show was probably being written while we were watching the mini season in the fall. I had a friend who interviewed to write for a TV show, and he spent a week with the writers to see how it's done. They may only have 4 or 5 epis ready to shoot before filming starts, and often they're writing each episode only weeks before that same epi is shot. They may not know when they have the actors available what the heck they'll be filming in 3 months.

This will depend on what type of show it is...for instance, a sitcom can be written on the fly easier than something as convoluted as Lost, since storylines don't have to fit together perfectly to form an overall cohesive whole. Episodes can exist independent of each other. Unless the speculation that the writers on Lost really ARE making it up as they go is correct lol...in which case it would explain the apparent numerous logic flaws that seem to exist. Either way, it does not take a momentuous amount of preplanning and organization to film scenes ahead of time on a series like this. Having Bernard and Rose not appear at all this season was not an unavoidable obstacle.

It was probably just a judgement call. Maybe they felt other stories warranted more time and development. Maybe they have a big plan to spin off a new show called "Rose and Bernard." Maybe the Bernard/Rose stories didnt test as well or had lower ratings. Maybe the actors are busy in other projects. Ultimately, what difference does it make? 

The main difference that it makes is in the continuity of the show and the people we're asked to pay attention to and invest time and interest in. I mean, just look on this site...threads and posts are dedicated to things like "Where's Rose? Where's Bernard?"...Hell, even "Where's Vincent?". Why? Because once you introduce a character and give them even the slightest significance, the audience intuitively assumes there's a reason. Howeve, when we are later asked to just forget about them and there seems to be NO reason, it doesn't compute, doesn't sit right.

The writers should be flattered that so many fans wonder about and care about even the more secondary and less relevant characters. I'm pretty sure they would not tell us to take a "who cares" attitude.