Now I'm Lost

I've never been into sci-fi much. I've probably seen a grand total of 10 X-File episodes, and the only space movie I've really ever enjoyed is the Tim Allen comedy, Galaxy Quest, which is pretty much a parody of most space movies anyway. I don't understand what's so great about Farscape, Star Trek or even Star Wars. Basically, sci-fi is not for me. But last summer I started watching this show on USA and I got totally hooked. This show, which could've very easily been on the Sci-Fi channel's prime time schedule, is The 4400. The new season premiers tonight on USA at 9 p.m. Right now, USA is showing all of last season episodes, so it's a good time to tune in and catch up if you've never seen the show.

The 4400 is a show about a group of people, who went missing at various times throughout the years, all showing up at this one spot at the exact same time. For some, decades have past, and for others, just a few years. But none of them have aged at all. Basically time stood still for them. None of them know where they were for all of those years, what happened to them during that time, or why they were the ones abducted. When they try to go back to their regular lives, they realize that unlike them, everything else has changed. They have to deal with no longer having the lives that they were used to, and being treated like freaks by the rest of the world. As the 4400 try to go on with their lives, some realize that they have accquired some really amazing abilities (e.i. super human strength, predicting the future, etc).

Last season, we were introduced to lots of interesting characters. Maia Rutledge is a little girl who disappeared in 1946. She's the youngest out of the 4400 and has the ability to predict the future. She's the perfect creepy little kid who seems to know way more than everyone else.

And then there's Richard Tyler and Lily Moore. Richard was a pilot during the Korean War and disappeared in 1951. Lily disappeared in 1993, leaving behind a husband and a new born baby. Lily and Richard meet in quarantine and quickly fall in love. It turns out that Lily is the granddaughter of the women Richard was in love with before he disappeared. Weird. Oh and a little while after Lily returns, she finds out that she's pregnant. But she wasn't before she disappeared. That makes you wonder, whose baby is it?

Jordan Collier (The OC's Billy Campbell, ya know the one that almost got Kirstin to cheat on Sandy) disappeared in 2002. He is a billionaire and opens a center for the 4400, a safe place for them to live their lives. But there's something shady about him. You just get a feeling like his intentions aren't completely honest.

The last of the main 4400 is Shawn Farrell who disappeared in 2001 when he was hanging out with his cousin Kyle one night, drinking beers. When Shawn was taken, whatever happened caused Kyle to fall into a coma. Kyle's illness ruined his parents marriage. Besides dealing with that, Shawn also had to deal with a jealous brother, Danny, who was now the same age as him. It didn't help that Danny's girlfriend was in love with Shawn, and he ended up falling for her too. Shawn ends up running away to the 4400 center after being unable to deal with his family. And Kyle wakes up from his three year coma. But he isn't the same person. His body in inhabited by a person from the future who was sent to warn the world about the horrible things that will happen.

So that's the lowdown. I'm actually really looking forward to the new season, and I'm thrilled that the Desperate Housewives season finale was a few weeks ago, 'cause I'd hate to have to choose what to watch at 9 on Sunday nights.

For the past couple of weeks, the ads on USA about the season premiere of The 4400 has featured The Mars Volta song Inertiatic E.S.P. The song is from the group's debut full length, De-Loused In The Comatorium. Check it out if you haven't heard it.