Cast: Naveen Andrews, Matthew Fox, Terry O’Quinn, Evangeline Lilly
Creator: JJ Abrams

Ah, Lost. While some television shows demand a degree of loyalty from their audience, J.J. Abrams’ epic mystery has done its level best to soak up every ounce of patience from its long-suffering fans. It’s the programme that gives with one hand, whilst gleefully snatching back with the other. Whenever one mystery is revealed, the explanation throws up three more, leaving you wondering whether the writers know any more about what’s going on than the viewers.

However, for those who have kept the faith, there are rewards in store in this fifth season, which is without doubt the most satisfying so far. In fairness, the accusations that Abrams and co. were leading the viewer a merry dance were largely levelled at the meandering third season. With the show disrupted by the 2007 writer’s strike, a lot of fans lost faith in Lost ever delivering on the promises set up by it’s excellent first series. However, ever since it was decided that the sixth season would be the last, the show has flourished with a second wind of narrative purpose.

Without giving too much away, season five sees the castaways divided between those who escaped the island at the end of season four, and those who were left behind. As the escapees are inevitably drawn back to the sunny Pacific, those who never left find themselves involved in a spot of time travel. Yep, time travel. Here we go again…

However, while this latest development might sound like a twist too far, it actually sheds a great deal of light on the island and it’s history. Characters that have only previously been mentioned by name are suddenly thrust into the spotlight, and everything starts to make a bit more sense. It definitely requires a fair bit of concentration, but stick with it and you won’t be disappointed.

One slight nag is the familiarity of some of Lost’s dramatic techniques. For example, you’ll lose count of the number of times a small child is presented in flashback, only to suddenly be revealed as a mini-version of one of the main characters. On top of that, some of the arguments between the leads feel strikingly familiar to those from earlier seasons. A scrap between Jack and Sawyer doesn’t carry quite the same punch the umpteenth time around.

These are minor quibbles though in an otherwise compelling return to form. All the inherent creepiness that made the show great in the first place is back with a vengeance, with the added benefit of feeling like it’s actually going somewhere. Naturally there is one more cliffhanger to endure, but it sets things up nicely for what should be a killer final season.

Lost Season 5 is out now on DVD and Blu-ray via Disney