Who's LOST?

Eight months. Eight. That's how long it has been since we last saw Jack whimpering, "We have to go back! We have to go back!" in yet another cliffhangery type, flash-forward ending to last season's finale of Lost.

Before you start squirming in your seat, no, I am not going to sit here and try to give you my interpretation of the show as so many internet people have no doubt done before me. No, I dare not ask about that whole deal with Locke in that cabin (Jacob?); or why there's people sitting at the bottom of the sea (Charlie?); or...

No, I can't go on. I still have questions from season one: Polar bears? Smoke monster? Black Rock? Come on! (Why do I watch? Why am I still tuning in? Is this my Guiding Light? My Days of our Lives?)

Anyway, Season Four starts tonight. In yet another attempt to keep us from straying, the folks at ABC chose Thursday night this time around. I swear this show is bordering on desperation to keep its viewers. They're doing everything except giving us answers. Last night I noticed they were showing season three's finale, BUT instead of just showing the episode outright, they had little scrolling bits of information along the bottom of the screen. To Lynette's amusement, I kept singing, "Pop Up Video!" I mean, seriously, any fool who tries to get into the show now without knowing what's going on in previous seasons is surely a glutton for punishment. So ABC thought, "We can just tell them what's going on via little word balloons."

In each scene, a little scroll of information regarding the various back stories appeared a la CNN news ticker. For example, if Juliette appeared on screen, a little scroll would appear: "Juliette was with the Others, but now she's with Jack. But some don't trust her." It was very funny. I kept imaging someone like my dad sitting in his living room, trying to decipher this rambling string of sentences for some show about a bunch of people trapped on a tropical island.

Regardless, Lost is back. I'll be watching. For those of you concerned about the writer's strike, ABC has said that Lost will air 16 episodes, but only 8 are in the can. So expect another Lost-hiatus sometime in March.

Plunging Back in The 'Lost' Maze - An Ominous 'Uh-Oh' Kicks Off The Castaways' Fourth Season (Washington Post)

A Caravan of Recaps, Sent to Rescue 'Lost' Viewership (Washington Post)

UPDATE:
ABC reveals first images of the monster on Lost. Link