'Lost' season 5 gets a premiere date

We don’t know where the Island went — but now know when we’ll be seeing it again. ABC insiders say that the fifth season of the Emmy-nominated cypto-drama will premiere with a two-hour event on Jan. 21, 2009, at 8 p.m. That’s a Wednesday, in case you don’t know next year’s calendar by heart, which means that Lost will be returning to its original day-of-the-week slot. (Last season, it aired on Thursday nights.)

While plans are still being finalized, sources indicate Lost will launch with its first two episodes aired back-to-back, not a single, two-hour opus like its season finales. (Should ABC reconsider the plan, look for the first hour of the two-hour event to be some kind of recap special.) Still TBD: if Lost will be making 8 p.m. its weekly Wednesday berth. An 8 p.m. start means the show will be competing against (gulp) Fox’s American Idol. At 9 p.m., Lost will be tangling with Fox’s new House-meets-The Mentalist procedural, Lie To Me, which will premiere the same night as Lost‘s return. When we get the regular time slot thing nailed down, we’ll let you know. – Additional reporting by Michael Ausiello and Lynette Rice

UPDATE: Look for Lost to make 9 p.m. its regular time slot, according to a source, albeit with the caveat that plans aren’t 100 percent finalized.

NEW UPDATE: The Lost season five premiere will actually be a three hour event! An hour-long recap special will air at 8 PM, followed by the first two episodes from 9-11 PM. The series will air thereafter at 9 PM on Wednesdays.

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