"Lost" Returns, "Eli Stone" Debuts -- and Broadcast is Better for It

Now that the seventh cycle of American Idol is up and running the second biggest television series event of the year arrives tonight with the season premiere of LostA new season of this scripted sensation would be an event of note even without the strike and the damage it is doing to network schedules Whether you love it or loathe it obsess over it or avoid it you have to admit that few shows have called as much positive attention to broadcast television since the arrival of Lost in 2004 Like The West Wing before it the quality of Lost at its best easily equals that of the many pay and basic cable series that during the last ten years have made much broadcast fare look like secondrate TV Lost has been one of those alltoorare series that actually elevates its medium a priceless attribute at a time when so many disparate forces are coming down on broadcast television and threatening to crush the life out of itIf emotional connectivity and engagement are the critical components of the relationship between viewers and their television content of choice then it can be argued that Lost grabs people and gets under their skin in a way few other series do The Sopranos comes to mind as a scripted show with similar strengths With its maddening proclivity toward layering new mysteries on top of an increasingly dense mythology which remains unclear even after four years Lost exasperates as much as it entertains But it never takes the easy road and it never questions the intelligence or integrity of its viewers even when it tests their patience which is admittedly very oftenEven when it isn39t in top form Lost always matters It matters especially to advertisers and others in the media community who continue to value high quality stimulating broadcast programming And it matters to those of us who have managed to preserve our attention spans after 25 years of increasingly fragmented entertainment and information options on television and online Who cares if this story takes a few years to tell Must everything move at the same frenetic paceFor all of you to whom it matters I am here to report that the first two episodes of this new season of Lost will once again tantalize and stimulate those who thrill to its ongoing twists and turns Similarly they will reinforce the opinions of those who complain that Lost spends too much time adding new elements to its seemingly bottomless ocean of mysteries without really clarifying anythingABC has all but threatened to bring down the wrath of God upon any critic who dares reveal too much information about these episodes so I39ll be purposely vague as I try to add to the excitement of it all The season premiere reveals information about Hurley that I believe to be new and it may inform the entire storyline to date It has prompted me to seek out an episode from Season 2 and review it for possible clues to my new theory about everything that has happened and continues to happen on this show This is yet another aspect of the Lost experience that I treasure Its unique ability to suddenly make me think about content from previous seasons in an entirely different light and reexamine narrative detailsThe second episode set for February 7 has one of those unexpected opening sequences that will fire up fans of this show all over again I wish this episode had been constructed as the season premiere because its opening moments will have people talking like they haven39t talked since the opening moments of Season 3 when we saw Oceanic Flight 815 break apart over the Others39 fauxsuburbia Like the Hurley story in tonight39s show next week39s adventure suggests that the story thus far is simply a part of something else something much much bigger than previously imagined In my mind it might also be part of the new theory I developed watching tonight39s episodeIf you are talking to yourself by the end of these two episodes you won39t be alone Better you should hop online and check out the buzz You should also remind yourself that you still have a long way to go until showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse fully explain themselves After these two hours there will be 46 more episodes spread out over three seasons before Lost ends its run in 2010Meanwhile tonight also brings with it the debut on ABC of yet another compelling characterdriven drama Eli Stone about a successful young attorney played by Jonny Lee Miller at a highpowered San Francisco law firm who turns his attention to ordinary people in need of legal support once he begins experiencing hallucinations many of them set to the music of George Michael some of them featuring Michael himself The central question running through this series is is Eli experiencing these visions because of an aneurysm he is diagnosed with or is he a prophetEli is certainly one of the best new series of the season and might likely have claimed the top spot had ABC not given us Pushing Daisies last fall It joins Lost The Sarah Connor Chronicles Friday Night Lights Las Vegas Law ampamp Order Boston Legal and The New Adventure of Old Christine on the short list of terrific scripted broadcast shows that are offering original episodes amid the growing carnage of the writers strikeRead TiVoWorthyTV Everyday at JackMyerscom

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"Lost" Returns, "Eli Stone" Debuts -- and Broadcast is Better for It

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"Lost" Returns, "Eli Stone" Debuts -- and Broadcast is Better for It

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