LOST

I know the current season of LOST—with all its time-traveling wackiness—is probably not to everyone's liking. But I LOVE it. Here are a few reasons why:

Fewer Flashbacks/Flashforwards: Honestly, they were getting old and getting in the way. The story on the island has long been more interesting than anything happening in these character's lives before they boarded Flight 815. As for the flashforwards, it was fun (at first) to see glimpses of the “Oceanic 6” once they made it home. That didn't last long, however. This season (at least so far) has split time between the survivors who got off the island and those who were left behind. No random side trips to Jack's previous life as a surgeon, or Kate's time on the run, or even to see Hurley as the goofy millionaire. Every episode this season, for the first time in a longtime, has felt like it was moving the story forward and will payoff in the end.

Sawyer and Locke: They have both been on screen a ton and that is always a very good thing. John Locke is slowly learning more and more about the island...and we are finally learning right along with him. After seeing how Ben left the island in last season's finale, we even might know more. No one wants to see Locke suffer the fate we know is coming, but since Christian Shepherd was dead when his coffin was boarded onto Flight 815 and now seems to be at least kinda-sorta-maybe-in-a-way alive, anything is possible.

As for Sawyer, we still don't know what he whispered to Kate just before he jumped from that helicopter, but we do know that he did jump to save her. That was clearly a man in love we saw in the jungle last night. Love, unfortunately, only goes so far. It is only a matter of time before Sawyer adds Juliette to his list (Ana Lucia, Kate) of island conquests. (If I had a Dharma beer, I'd toast him.)

Charles Widmore: Now we know why Widmore is so desperate to get control of the island—he was once an Other! That was a huge piece of the puzzle, as was the fact that he had overseen the care of the young girl who was so badly harmed by Daniel Faraday's experiments. That piece of information coupled with the fact that Faraday couldn't take his eyes off the female Other who led him to the bomb in that same episode (“You very much look like someone I used to know...) has led me to theorize that the stricken girl is actually another Widmore daughter. If that is true, it could change the meaning of Ben's threat from last year. (“You killed my daughter, Charles. Now I am going to kill yours.” Or not. Who knows?

Also, was that girl born on the island? Was Charlotte? Miles? Is that why they are showing signs of being harmed by the time-shifting faster than are Sawyer and Locke?

Here's hoping things keep on getting better. Now we know that Jin is still alive and that Sun is up to no good. And how cool was it to see the young and pregnant Danielle arrive on the island? But who did the two canoes belong to, and who was it who pursued Locke and Sawyer and the gang across the water? Be on the lookout for bad guys in canoes...