I suppose I can take comfort in the fact that, while I am a huge LOST fan, I'm not so nerdy as to travel all the way to California to attend the Comic Convention and dress up as my favorite LOST character. Luckily, I can quietly be nerdy, comfortable at home, watching everything on youtube. The LOST panel included Darlton - the pet name for the two producers and writers - Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, with special surprise guest Matthew Fox. But stealing the show was the Dharma Initiative: official sponsors of LOST. Team Darlton even drank big gulps out of DI cups, much like Simon, Randy, and Paula product-placing Coca-cola on American Idol. The DI even had recruiters, and comic-con attendees could go into the Dharma booth to find out if they were eligible to join. Find out if you are eligible to become part of the Dharma Initiative here.

The fans' questions were tough for team Darlton, and they, as usual, deflected most; as not to spoil anything. They did admit that for most of season 3 they weren't sure where the show was going (they didn't ever go as far to say that they were making it up as they went along). But now, they said, because they know exactly how long the show will run, down to the exact number of episodes, they have it planned out to the letter. I, along with fellow LOST maniacs, sincerely hope this is true.

Another exciting event at Comic-Con - they showed a teaser for the 2 hour prequel movie of 24: Exile. This hasn't officially been aired yet; it was a Comic-Con exclusive - but it's still exciting to watch on youtube, even if it was filmed on somebody's phone. No sign of Tony Almeida, but the new female president is prominent in the preview, we get a glimpse of the new character Jon Voight, and, most importantly, Jables himself. See what you think:

If it feels like it's been a lifetime since you've seen Jack Bauer killing a terrorist by tearing out his jugular with his teeth, you'd be right. Blame the writer's strike!! But the wait is almost over. Well, not really, but compared to the wait so far, Jack is practically right around the corner. Day 7 isn't starting until January '09, but FOX is graciously giving 24 fans a two-hour prequel movie on November 23rd. Even though there will be a 2 hour movie, when Day 7 starts in January there will still be all 24 yummy hours of Jack.

In store for Day 7:

Tony is back! And a villain?

Jon Voight is cast as Jack's nemesis, and Cherry Jones plays the president.

Jack's dark side has been creeping towards the surface, and it feels like he's getting closer and closer to despair. Can't wait to see what happens on Day 7.