Lost
Review: Alias creator's new show is trouble in paradise.
J J Abrams has dispensed with the fabulous wigs and outrageous gadgets of his hit spy show to produce something vastly different but equally compelling with new ABC primetime series Lost.
Party of Five's Matthew Fox plays Jack, a doctor in need of a little medical attention himself when he's blown out of an airliner thousands of miles off course and into a tropical paradise.
He and 47 other survivors must work together against the cruel weather and harsh terrain if they want to get off the island alive. Their new home holds many secrets, including mysterious creatures stalking the jungle, ready to tear them all apart. The survivors hold a few secrets of their own, tooå
Fox is supported by a fine cast, including Chris Carter favourite and former Alias actor Terry O'Quinn as a mysterious character seemingly at one with the island and Angel and 24's Daniel Dae Kim, who gets through the first episode without uttering a word of English.
Newcomer Evangeline Lilly is an immediate hit as leading lady Kate and J J's bestest mate Greg Grunberg gets a delicious cameo as an ill-fated member of the jet's cabin crew.
Although we're told the series will be based on reality rather than fantasy, there's a superb sense of weirdness pervading the opening episode that is sure to win it a cult following. Mysterious unseen monsters and bizarre radio messages lend something of a modern Irwin Allen feel to the show – Lost in Paradise rather than Lost in Space.
With Buffy/Angel producer David Fury now onboard as co-executive producer and all the other cool series like Alias and 24 being bumped to January, Lost stands a great chance of finding a strong foothold in the new season TV ratings.
It also features a scene where man meets jet engine that's surely the greatest "Oh my God, did they really just do that?" moment on TV this year.
Channel Four have snapped up the UK rights, so expect to see Lost over here soon.
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