"Lost" in translation

Keeping eyes open to Internet chatter about the writers strike has frankly been, well, boring. Other than reports about Jimmy Kimmel delivering lunch to picketers and some soap opera writers daring to cross the line (they need writers for that dreck?), it doesn't appear as if there's any meat to negotiation sessions. Instead, the early going has been about public solidarity, with the actual writers taking a backseat as the national media flock to Eva Longoria and Brad Garrett for choice quotes.

It's already been reported that shows like "Pushing Daisies," "Heroes" and "Men In Trees" did enough tinkering with last remaining episodes so that they could function as season finales if the strike persists. However, a lot of shows are going to abruptly end without a trace of resolution, because according to Broadcasting and Cable, there doesn't appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

What does this mean for a show like "Lost," whose much-anticipated return is slated for February?

Michael Ausiello of TV Guide writes that if the strike ends in the next month or so, "there's a good chance all 16 episodes will still air this season. If it goes on longer than that, the back eight would most likely be grouped in with next season's 16. Let's hope it doesn't come to that."

Unlike Fox, which decided against a partial season of "24," ABC has said that as of now, it's planning to air the eight completed "Lost" episodes they have. Fox was in a better position to make the "24" call since they have the "American Idol" juggernaut coming in January. But it appears without a quick resolution, "Lost's" already patient and extremely passionate fanbase is going to lose no matter what.

"Damon [Lindelof] and my concern about running the [eight] episodes we will have made is that it will feel a little like reading half a Harry Potter novel, then having to put it down," co-creator Carlton Cuse told TV Guide. "There is a mini-cliff-hanger at the end of Episode 8, but it's like the end of an exciting book chapter; it's not the end of the novel. Damon and I didn't write [the ending of Episode 8] differently [with the looming strike in mind]. We wrote it to be the ending of Episode 8.

"It's really [ABC honcho Steve MacPherson's] call ... No one was happy with the six-episode run last season."

Any "Lost" fans out there? What's the worst-case scenario? Do you want to see the eight completed episodes air in February regardless of how long the strike drags? Or is continuity too important to sacrifice and is it better to wait?

-- Thomas Rozwadowski, trozwado@greenbaypressgazette.com