So it finally arrived, the first episode of the new season of Lost! Its only been a few minutes since the episode actually ended and I’m already excited for next week. Of course, there are lots of questions that won’t be answered until sometime during the season. I can only hope that the writer strike doesn’t leave us after 8 episodes with too many questions. Please, please come up with an agreement so that Lost fans don’t have to wait until next year!!

When the episode starts we see Hurley in a high-speed chase being pursued by the police. Hurley finally stops his Camaro, gets out of his car, holds up his hands and tells the police that he is one of the oceanic six (more on this later). While at the police station Ana Lucia’s old partner asks Hurley what he was running away from earlier in the day. Hurley had been at a convenient store before the chase and saw something that freaked him out. Hurley didn’t reveal to the police officer what he saw. The police officer went out for a donut (hello, stereotype). While waiting for the officer to return Hurley looks into the one way mirror and has a vision of Charlie in what appears to be his last minutes in the Looking Glass Station, right before he dies. The glass breaks and water comes crashing into Hurley. Hurley is freaked out and screams for the police officer to come back. When he does the officer asks Hurley if he needs to be psychiatrically hospitalized. Hurley is thrilled, hugs him and agrees to hospitalization.

Hurley eventually makes it back to the Santa Rosa hospital (by the way did you notice when he was outside he was drawing an igloo and Eskimo? Was his picture significant? Why were there mountains behind the hospital? It looked like the island to me.). A little while later Charlie arrives. Charlie admits to Hurley that he is dead but that he has something to tell Hurley. Hurley doesn’t want to hear it closes his eyes and counts to five. When he opens his eyes Charlie is gone again. What message did Charlie want to give to Hurley? Later Hurley is playing basketball and Jack comes to visit. Jack looks great. He is clean-shaven and tells Hurley that he is back to work. He leaves out the fact that he was drinking very strong screwdrivers (orange juice and vodka) the day that Hurley was arrested. Jack tells Hurley that he wanted to check in on him. Hurley thinks Jack is trying to make sure he keeps his mouth shut (What does Jack want Hurley to keep quiet about?). Jack decides to leave and Hurley apologizes for going with Locke before they left the island. Jack accepts his apology and then leaves.

On island we are taken right back to where we left off when last season’s episode ended. Naomi doesn’t die right away even though Locke throws a knife through her back. The losties think Naomi is dead but somehow she sneaks away while no one is paying attention (no one but Ben). Jack connects with someone on Naomi’s ship and is told that rescue is on its way. Everyone is excited except for Ben who tells Jack he has one last chance to save everyone on the island. Jack decides to take everyone back to the beach so that rescue is easier. Before he does, he decides to find Naomi. Kate believes that Naomi is trying to trick them and has left two trails of blood to follow, Jack doesn’t think so and follows the wrong trail of blood. Smart Kate steals the telephone from Jack when they hug and proceeds down the correct path of blood. Eventually Kate finds Naomi. Naomi is in bad shape and is on the verge of death. Naomi fixes the frequency so that her fellow shipmates can find the island and tells her friends that she had an accident upon arrival at the island. She does not tell her friends that Locke caused her death. Naomi then dies and Kate returns with the phone back to Jack and the other losties. Jack speaks with someone on Naomi’s boat again and they assure Jack that rescue is on its way.

While this is happening Desmond returns to the beach to find Hurley, Bernard, Sawyer and Jin. He tells them the news that Charlie has drowned while trying to save everyone on the island. Desmond also tells of the note Charlie wrote on his hand before his early demise (I’ll miss you Charlie and so will Claire and Aaron). The note, “Not Penny’s Boat”, makes everyone question who is on their way to save them. They decide to trek back to the tower where Jack and the rest of the losties are to tell them the news. Hurley gets lost along the way and ends up at Jacob’s house. He looks in and see’s Jacob’s rocking chair rocking. An eye (Locke’s, I believe) then pops up and stares him directly in the eye. Hurley freaks, thinks he is hallucinating closes his eye and tries to wish the vision away. When he opens his eyes Locke is there. Hurley tells Locke about the note Charlie wrote on his hand and Locke convinces Hurley that they are all in danger. Hurley and Locke find their way to where Jack and the other losties are waiting for rescue. Jack and Locke plead their cases. Some people fearing what these new people might do go with Locke to the barracks. The rest stay with Jack and Kate.

Before the episode ends Jack and Kate are talking. It is raining heavily and Kate believes the thunder is getting louder. Jack hears something different and looks into the sky. There is a helicopter and a man parachutes to the ground. The man takes off his hat and asks, “are you Jack?”

Questions and Comments:
- Why doesn’t Hurley admit to the police officer that he knows Ana Lucia?

- Who is coming to the island?

- Where is Penny? Will her crew finally find the island?

- Who did Hurley see in Jacobs cabin? Was it just Locke like I suspect or someone else?

- The Oceanic 6: so far we know three but who else gets off the island?

1. Jack
2. Kate
3. Hurley
4. ?
5. ?
6. ?

If only these six people get off the island are the rest still on island? Have they been killed as Ben stated they would be (during the final episode of last season Ben said that everyone on the island would die)?

PS. I did not wait up to see the special announcement from Oceanic Airlines on the new show Eli Stone. Did anyone catch it and was it important?

Ok after a long, long wait Lost finally returns tonight for the beginning of It's 4th season. Although this season was supposed to be 16 straight episodes, the writers strike has cut it down to only 8. Our Lost blogger Nancy will also return after a long hiatus with her recaps, questions and some theories. 

So to get ready for tonight here are a few things to get you ready. First, following in the footsteps of the Sopranos in 7 minutes and the Wire in 4 minutes. Here is the first 3 seasons of Lost in 8:15.

Next is a video called Lost the syncronizing, which syncronizes different episodes of the events leading up to the crash of Oceanic Flight 815 and shows what happened on the ground and in the air at the same moment from multiple angles.

Finally, Here are some questions that I still have and you probably do to.

--Who were those guys in the icebound monitoring station at the end of Season 2?

--What is the significance of Claire's baby?

--What's the meaning behind that crazy mural painted inside the Swan Station?

--Where exactly is the island located?

--What gets worshipped at the temple Ben mentions near the end of the third season?

--Who are the people on the rescue ship?

--If Penny Widmore didn't send the ship, then where is her rescue crew?

--Can we trust Juliet?

--How did the Black Rock ship get there?

--Are there any more Dharma stations left to be found?

--Will we learn more about Libby's connection to Hurley?

--Will the rest of the survivors learn about Hurley's fortune?

--How did Locke's father get on the island?

--What is the sickness Rousseau talked about her crew getting in the first season?

--What do the numbers -- 4 8 15 16 23 42 -- mean?

--Will Desmond retain his ability to see the future?

--Who besides Kate and Jack got off the island?

--Who is Kate's unseen mate in the post-island flash-forward?

--What's the deal with that four-toed statue from the Season 2 finale?

--In Jack's post-island flash-forward, who was in the coffin?

--What happened to Michael and Walt after they left the island?

--What is Walt's power?

--How did Mikhail (the eye-patch guy) appear to come back from the dead?

--Why doesn't Richard Alpert age?

--Who/What is Jacob?

2. What is the smoke monster?

1. What is that island?

I thought I'd change things up and show you a song from all the Patriot haters out there, that is pretty much everyone outside of New England. I'll just say this, look out for Eli and his cape.

Gordon Edes, of the Boston Globe, spoke with Gene Matos, one of Manny Ramirez's agents today.  Before we get to the meat and potatoes of this story, I gotta ask:  How many agents does Manny Ramirez have?  I picture him like Vinnie Chase on Entourage walking into a big boardroom filled with agents.  Except, instead of scripts, they have some G.I. Joe and Ninja Turtle action figures on the table to keep Manny occupied while everyone else discusses his future.

Anyway, there were some pretty interesting and exciting bits of news Gordon learned about. 

"He's going to the game,'' Matos said. "The Patriots got him some tickets. I don't think he's ever been before.''

That's very cool.  It never hurts to have a two-time World Champion in your corner.  Classy move by the Patriots.   I imagine that Manny is extremely ecstatic and sincerely grateful for the opportunity.

Matos said that Manny has been working out at the famed Athletes Performance Institute in Arizona with Rookie Of The Year Dustin Pedroia, who said that Manny is in great shape.  

Gordon also unearthed this little nugget:

When I mentioned that I'd be arriving early for spring training, Matos laughed and said, "Maybe we'll convince Manny to come to camp early, too.''

It's probably not a good sign when a player's agent is joking about the prospect of said player showing up early for Spring Training.  Also, lest we forget:

...the Sox don't have to exercise the option on Manny's contract -- they hold a $20m option for both 2009 and 2010 -- until November, and won't be in any hurry to do so. But Manny, who needs just 10 home runs to reach 500 for his career, doesn't seem inclined to make the option an issue at this stage. He turns 36, by the way, on May 30.

That's it.  I know we're all focused on the Super Bowl this week, and for good reason, but I didn't want to let everybody's favorite franchise get completely swept under the rug.  And no, we didn't end up with Johan, but darnit, we got Aardsma!  Who's laughing now, Yankees?  Who's laughing now.

As you all know yesterday was Super Bowl media day and our man Josh wrote about how impressed he was with this New England Patriots team and how they were relaxed, yet confident.  How they handled the football questions extremely well and they had fun with the ridiculous questions as well. It case you missed it, these two videos show what Josh was saying.

When the Boston Globe started selling a book through Amazon the other day, I was not to happy about it because I knew the Giants would use it against us. Now thanks to reader Andy, I see that there is a Giants book for sale too at Target. As of right now it is still there and has not been pulled like the Patriots book was. CLICK HERE TO SEE.

This makes me feel somewhat better about the whole thing. I understand you need to be prepared, but do not sell or promote it before it even happens!

This Quote comes from Celtics rookie forward Glen Davis who goes by the popular nickname "Big Baby." He wants to add a second nickname.

I like "The Ticket Stub." "We got 'The Ticket' [Garnett]," Davis said. "And I look like a stub, so I'm 'The Ticket Stub

When I wrote THIS last night and when the Herald wrote about it today. I knew the Giants would use it against us. I'm still angry about this.

Well, what a week.  Tom Brady has officially passed Curt Schilling for having the most famous footwear in Boston history.  Enough already, sorry Giants fans....he's playing, will play well end of story..no trophy for you this year.  A question was proposed to Brady the other day that I think speaks to most professional sports.  When asked if Brady if he'd being playing in the Superbowl, Brady replied, "The Superbowl no doubt, the Pro Bowl, I'll wait and see." 

How ironic, on a weekend where the NHL All-Star game was played.  Be honest, did anyone even know it was All-Star weekend in the NHL?  I admit being named to any respective All-Star team in any professional career is a tremendous accolade.  But come on, the games are a joke.  The NBA over/under (not that we promote gambling at Bostonsportz........pffffttt...) is about 300, the NHL All-Star games has about 20 goals scored, the Pro-Bowl is a watered down version of an alumni game with certain rules enforced (no rushing punts etc..), they tried to make the MBL All-Star game competitive with the home field advantage going to the league winner for the World Series (Yes, I'm aware the Sox benefitted in '04').  But seriously, remember Pete Rose and Ray Fossey, Rose barrelling into Fossey and ultimately changing his career....Rose was crucified (long before the gambling).

My point is this, it's a reward for the players in the respective profession.  Let them enjoy it, better yet let them enjoy it with the fans.  I'm attracted to more of the skills competition: 3 point shooting, slam dunk contest, accuracy shooting, hardest slap shot, quarterback accuracy, home run derby.  That's what fans want to see, premier athletes showcasing their specific talent against other premier athletes in skills competitions, not a JV version of what they're asked to do day in and day out.

So name these guys to their teams, All-Pro, Wales Conference, NBA East & West, AL & NL All-stars.  It'll mean more to the athletes and fans.  So Brady doesn't go to the Pro-Bowl, so he gets the recognition, but who'll take his place........probably the 5th or 6th quarterback in the NFL.  Folks, Jeff Garcia is in the Pro-Bowl, because of guys not accepting after enduring a laborious physical season since mid July.  Some even having surgery because their teams season ended in late December. 

These teams are reserved for the best players in the league at their respective positions.  They're not reserved for guys who make it by default, and we won't even touch the MLB ruling that every team has to be represented.  If you're at the professional level and you can't produce one legitimate All-Star, it's time to get rid of the franchise and eliminate watered down competition.

Today is Media Day at the Super Bowl.  It's very much a circus like atmosphere as it usually is each year.  There were 5,000 media credentials issued for the Super Bowl and the players and coaches are hit with all sorts questions from the media...many who come from outside of the sports arena.  I just finished watching the Patriots session which began at 12pm ET.

After watching on NFL Network and seeing them bounce around from player to player as they were fielding questions from the media...I am more impressed than ever with this New England Patriots team.  They are relaxed, yet confident.  They handle the football questions extremely well and they have fun with the ridiculous questions as well.  They provide thoughtful answers and they don't take shots at their opponents.  This team is 18-0 and on the brink of history, but you get the impression from them that it's just another week.  You don't sense any nervousness with this team.  Many of them have been to the show before and they understand the magnitude of this game.  They're in Arizona on a business trip. 

It all starts with the Kraft family and Bill Belichick.  It trickles down to every player who puts on a Patriots jersey, whether they're on the active roster or on the practice squad.  Patriots fans have been spoiled over the past seven seasons.  Five trips to the AFC Championship game and four trips to the Super Bowl.  With that said...there are no signs that this ride is going to end anytime soon.  So as you get ready to watch the game on Sunday...take a few minutes to just appreciate what is going on in Foxboro right now.  It's a special time to be from New England.  

The days of being the loveable underdog are over.  2001 seems like a distant memory as the Patriots are now often referred to as the most hated team in America.  Success often breeds jealousy.  Many people are hoping for a monumental collapse by the Patriots on Sunday.  Hoping that this pursuit of perfection comes to a crashing halt on the biggest stage.  After listening to the players speak today, I am more convinced than ever that it is not going to happen.  They will not allow it.  Not after coming this far...not now.  So despite the shots that many football fans and media types around the country have taken at this team throughout the season...I have never been more proud to be a Patriots fan!

Back by popular demand are even more Pats songs from our readers. In case you are just joining us. It all started when I created the  16-0 and 17-0 Videos. Since then I received a bunch of emails from our readers that have made their own Patriots songs. The first batch was Pats Songs From Our Readers. The second batch was a little scary with these two.

Today we have 4 brand new songs and some of these are not that bad.

Ok, first we have crazy Stew who calls himself the man of 1000 voices, he does a parody of the Dropkick Murphys', SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON.

Next up is a rap song made by Maverik from Jamn 94.5 in Boston.

Now we have a sequel to the Patriots Defense song I posted last week. For some reason this songs stays in my head.

Finally we have a mystery singer called the "unknown Patriot fan" Although he sounds just like the Singing Plumber" from last week.

If you have a song send it along to me.

That's right, It's been quite a few weeks for BostonsportZ.com, first on we were talked about on WROR a few weeks ago, now today in the Boston Herald's Inside Track! If your out pick up a paper to check it out or see it online  by CLICKING HERE.

What the Hell are you thinking? This is just absolutely horrible. How can you justify what you have done? I would not expect something like this from you. If this ends up not happening, It will be because you jinxed it! This is just like a coach announcing he made hotel reservations before he knew that his team was going.

CLICK HERE TO SEE WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT IF YOU WANT TO BE ANGRY. 

UPDATE: AMAZON HAS PULLED THE BOOK AS A RESULT OF ALL THE ATTENTION, BUT I GOT A SCREEN CAPTURE FIRST. SEE IT BELOW

Something needs to be done about this, Kraft needs to revoke the Globes media passes.

thanks to Andretippettsuperhero for the info.

In his only one on one interview during the Super Bowl week, Tom talks to WEEI about many things including how important a victory would be for everyone involved.

One week down...one to go!  The Patriots departed Foxboro earlier today to make the long flight out to Arizona for Super Bowl XLII.   Fans braved the cold and snow to give the 18-0 Patriots a proper send off as they look to complete a season for the ages next Sunday. 

Tom Brady addressed the crowd inside Gillette Stadium shortly before the team loaded onto five buses to head to the airport. 

Go Patriots!

This isn't a mid-season report.  We're not handing out grades to anybody.  I just wanted to take a few minutes and give my impressions of your 2007-2008 Boston Celtics.  See how the youngsters are progressing, how the veterans are meshing and even see how Doc Rivers has been handling this group.

We'll be talking about the starters today and the bench a little later.  Without further ado, here's what Aaron has to say:

Rajon Rondo:  I don't want to say he's regressing, but... Rajon seems to be regressing.  He's not expected to do too much beyond take care of the ball, keep the defense honest, push the ball up the court and play solid defense.  There have been a handful of games this season where he'd done all that to perfection.  There have been too many games, especially lately, where he's done little or none of that.  Now, I know he's injured, and maybe he's being bothered more than he's leading on... but he's been looking pretty brutal out there.  I remember a game against New Jersey early in the year where he held Jason Kidd in check.  Every time Kidd touched the ball, Rajon was up on him, pestering him, knocking the ball out of Kidd's hands and away from him every time he tried to put the ball on the floor.  That was a few months ago.  Last night, Rondo couldn't even handle Sebastian Telfair -- the guy we threw to the Wolves (pun intended) because we had Rondo.  I'll admit that Rajon is my favorite player, so maybe I'm being a little too harsh on him, but with our lack of any PG depth, he very well may be the key to our season.  Let's hope he regains his confidence and turns it around.

Ray Allen:  Ray has been a bit of a head-scratcher.  I expected him to be our cold-blooded killer.  With KG getting double-teamed and Pierce drawing the defense in with his penetrations, I knew Ray would get a handful of open looks each night.  He has.  He just hasn't been able to find his shot this season.  While his percentages are down from past seasons, they're really not down that much (2% on FG from last year, .1% on 3's).  The puzzling part is that Ray achieved those numbers with a huge target on his back, facing double-teams each game.  Getting all the open looks, one would think his percentages would be skyrocketing.   It may sound like a silly theory, but the reason may be because he needs that hand in his face to knock down his shot.  He may be getting too much time to shoot, or he's over-thinking his shots.  Either way, he's having too many games where he shoots 4-16 or 3-12.  He's definitely showing flashes of brilliance and has hit his share of big shots.  I have all the faith in the world that he'll be able to find his touch this year, and when he does, we'll be unstoppable.

Paul Pierce:  He's been amazing this year.  For the first few months he played his heart out on both ends of the court.  He knew he didn't need to dominate on offense, so he committed himself on D and was playing at a level we hadn't seen from him before.  Unfortunately, he seems to be wearing down a bit.  He's been averaging 38 minutes a night and I think it's time to shave 5 or so minutes from his PT until the Spring.  While his points are down from last year, he's averaging 1 more assist per game plus half a steal.  There have been too many times where he's turned into what people are referring to as "Evil Paul" (i.e.. putting his head down and ignoring his teammates resulting in a terrible shot or a turnover), but we'll always get that from him.  If he can play at this level all year, we can deal with a few poor possessions each night.  I just think Doc needs to control his minutes, keep him fresh and healthy and let him play his game.

Kevin Garnett:  We can't underestimate what his heart and passion have brought to this team.  He has, almost single-handedly, brought back Celtic Pride.  He's a guy who understands what putting on that green uniform means.  He's a cheerleader on the bench, the first guy to pick his teammates off the court and the vocal leader we need to keep everyone in check.  Oh, did I also mention that many "NBA Experts" have him as their mid-point MVP and Defensive Player of the Year?  He's been everything we could have hoped for and more.  My only issue with him is when he hangs around at the top of the key too often.  This could very well be Doc's choice, and yes, KG can knock down those shots consistently, but our offense isn't nearly as effective as when he's playing in the paint.  He's also been too unselfish.  I'd like to see him take no few than 14 shots a night and more importantly, take over down the stretch.  In the East he's going up against many inferior players each night -- I'd like to see him mop the floor with them.  Beyond that, thank you Kevin McHale.

Kendrick Perkins:  Perk has been puzzling this year.  He's another guy who'd been inconsistent.  I know he'll never be a 20 PPG player, but he should be good for 10 rebounds and 2 blocks a night.  While his FG percentage is up by over 10% from last year (and he has KG to thank for that), there have been too many nights where he makes little to no impact.  Two games ago he went off for 24 points and 8 rebounds, last night he scored 21 with 3 blocks (including some dominating post play down the stretch).  That's great, but there was also a 4 point 3 rebound game sandwiched in the middle of those two.  He's baffling.  I do believe he's starting to hear Glen Davis' footsteps.  Glen is a guy who, despite his rookie status, plays the post like a weathered veteran.  He has a nose for the ball, uses no wasted dribbles or moves down low and has a nice passing touch.  The more he advances, the more minutes Kendrick loses.  It'll be interesting to see how that develops as the season wears on, but if Kendrick can just stick to playing efficient, effective low-post basketball, that's all we can ask.

Doc Rivers:  OK, our record is 34-7 (that's an 83% win percentage people), so he must be doing something right.  Let's examine what Doc has been excelling at, shall we?  He's coaching KG, Pierce and Ray Allen.  It's hard to screw that up.  Even if you come to the game with a terrible gameplan, their skill level alone will net you the 'W' on most nights.  Along with that, the one saving grace for Doc these past few seasons is that everybody loves him.  The media, the front office, and specifically his players like playing for him.  This is crucial when coaching a veteran team like this.  It's one thing for players to say they'll commit themselves to unselfish play for the benefit of the team, but when you group 3 players who have been the Alpha Dog every step of their career, you need a coach who they'll listen to and respect.  Not a Pat Riley military type who demands you respect him, but an honest, likeable guy who the players trust.  Doc is that guy.  Now, there are 3 glaring negatives for Doc this year.  Time management -- I'm terrified he's going to burn these guys out this year.  Early in the season when we were blowing teams away, the Big 3 should've been sitting instead of increasing an already insurmountable lead.  I also don't think it'd be a horrible idea to sacrifice a few wins in the regular season to make sure we have healthy, rested players for the post season.  Next, for some reason our defense cannot defend the pick and roll.  It doesn't matter who running it, we can't stop it.  I'd focus the next 200 practices on just this until we get it right.  Lastly, our offensive gameplan.  I touched on this in the KG section, but the games we lose have been the ones where KG has been hanging out at the 3 point line instead of the block.  I understand stretching the defense and drawing big men out of the paint to open up the middle, but our team is far more effective when KG camps out down-low, draws the double team and either kicks the ball back out or squeezes the ball into Kendrick for an easy two. 

So, that's all I have to say about that.  We're #1 in the league, and I don't see a reason that anybody will surpass us (in the regular season at least).  The one thing I think we're starting to see, which was to be expected I guess, is that everybody is getting themselves up to play us.  Everybody wants to knock off the Celtics.  So, when we play a lowly team like the Timberwolves, instead of walking all over them, they play their hearts out to try to beat the best.  I guess that's the downside to being the best team in the league.

With no football on this weekend, this looks like an interesting show for all Pats fans.

CNBC gained an all-access pass into the business behind your Patriots. Kraft, Belichick, and Brady reveal secrets to their success during CNBC's special "Touchdown! The Patriots and the Business of Winning," - Premieres Sunday 10p ET on CNBC. Kraft even reveals why he hired Belichick. Here are two clips from the show.