If you haven't already been watching it, you are missing some of the most engaging original drama on television in recent memory. It's not a re-hash of the same old cop-drama or hospital soap. In a way Lost has been sort of genre-defying. The story seems to lie somewhere between survival epic and science fiction, with overtones right out of "Lord of the Flies".
Last night the final episode of the first season aired and as expected, it was quite the cliff hanager. Very little of anything new was really revealed, and yet you were still left feeling that you were one step closer to learning the secret of the island. More importantly though, the characters were developed further. This, and I think this alone is what separates Lost from the rest of the fodder we normally find on television; the characters are real, three-dimensional characters with all the flaws, foibles and feelings required to make them come alive.
On the subject of predictability, one of the things I really like about this show is that even when being predictable, it still attempts to take television in a new and fresh direction. Giving people what they need, rather than what has satisified them in the past is another hallmark of what lifts this show above the others. Knowing full-well that the mysteries of Lost may never be revealed, I still can't wait for its next season!
I am also gratified to see that for once, something intelligent and well-crafted has risen to the level of "smash hit". Bravo to ABC for the vision and confidence to bring something to the network airwaves that departs from the usual formulaic nonsense we've grown so accustomed to.