50. Going back to the island.

After eight months of waiting around, wandering aimlessly in the proverbial desert with nothing to live for, my life was once again re-enriched last night with the return of my favorite television drama.

Which is a weird (if not slightly-hyperbolic) statement, because--save for the show that has had a remarkable influence in my life--I don't really get all that excited about TV shows.

Then again, LOST is not your typical TV show.

I didn't expect--nor even want--to jump on the bandwagon. I missed the first three seasons, which, when dealing with a serial drama such as LOST, means something of an uphill battle for the late entrant.

But during the hiatus between seasons 3 and 4, I got caught up on the first three seasons--thanks to the brilliant concept of TV show season DVDs (simply one of the best ideas of the past 10 years), and my friend, former roommate, and LOST-sherpa, Jonathan.

It didn't take long before I was hooked on the show about a group of plane crash survivors marooned on a mysterious island.

The show's constant barrage of plot twists and turns make for maddeningly engrossing suspense. The layers of meaning and the ever-growing mythology that surrounds the show make for constant theorizing and great conversation with other fans of the show.

But it's the show's characters--characters we've come to know and love for four seasons now--who make the show the wonderfully engaging and irresistible bit of entertainment that it is. (For what it's worth, my favorites are: Sawyer, Desmond, Ben, Locke, Juliet, and Kate...though probably just because she's hot.)

It's the perfect little bit of escapism, and I'm glad to have it back in my life. I'll be quite sad to see the saga come to a close in roughly 16 months from now.