Lost

With Season Three merely a week away, TV forecasters are calling this the most important season for Lost. Citing a drop off in viewers from season one to season two, it would appear a continued decline could spell doom for the wunderkind. Nikki Stafford, author of "Finding Lost: The Unofficial Guide," says, "In most cases, viewers are not forgiving, and they're going to move away, and Lost lost some momentum — its ratings were down slightly. It's a tribute to the show's writing that most viewers didn't go away, because they can certainly stamp their feet and declare, 'No! I've had it!' "Season three," she adds, "is definitely make it or break it." Lostproducers hope a re-run free split season will help redeem the series and bring viewers back. Lost will run for six episodes then break for 13 weeks, returning with 17 more episodes to be broadcast without reruns. The network will compensate the advertisers by running extended versions of the episodes in a straight run following the completion of the third season. The extended versions will add additional footage into the season three episodes in an attempt to lure die-hard viewers back for another look.