This review may contain spoilers.

"Lost" ended its penultimate season with a bang ... literally. Like most fans who have stuck around this long, I've been anxious to see what happens next since last May, when Juliet detonated the bomb and viewers were left staring and a white screen. Would the explosion prevent Oceanic 815 from crashing, or would the characters just make their present more miserable?

It didnt take long to answer that question. The episode begins with Jack (Matthew Fox) and many other familiar faces aboard Oceanic Flight 815 before the crash. The plane weathers some turbulence. The plane does not crash, however. The camera travels down to the ocean floor, where viewers see the decaying submerged village of the Others. Apparently, detonating the bomb did work, and a new time line has been created.

Not so fast. When the episode returned from commercial break, Kate (Evangaline Lily) was stuck in a tree and other members of the Oceanic survivors, Jack, Sawyer (Josh Holloway), Jin (Daniel Dae Kim), Hurley (Jorge Garcia) and Miles (Ken Leung) all find themselves in the present. Apparently, the bomb sent them flying right out of the 1970s and back to their normal time. It is soon revealed that Juliet is still somehow alive, but trapped under the wreckage, and Sayid (Naveen Andrews) is dying from his gunshot wound.

The episode then ping-pongs back and forth, between the island of the present day and the new reality of the plane safely landing in 2004; viewers get reintroduced to many characters who have long since perished, like Charlie (Dominic Monaghan), Boone (Ian Somerholder), and even Arnst. Jack revives Charlie when he suffocates in an attempt to swallow some concealed drugs. Boone and John Locke (Terry OQuinn) meet under different circumstances, as do Jack and Desmond (Henry Ian Cusik), who is a passenger on the plane this time around, presumably because there is no island any more, hence no button to push.

But the heart of the episode is when Juliet, unable to survive from her injuries, bids farewell to Sawyer.

Fans of Lost are used to episodes bouncing between the past and present, but bouncing between alternate realities may drive some viewers away. Alternate time lines and paradoxes are intriguing if done well, but I fear that Lost has gone off the deep end here. Viewers will possibly see characters killed off, only to find them alive and well a few moments later.

As a viewer who has been with Lostsince the beginning, I will continue watching until the end. Unfortunately, that may be the only reason viewers stick around at all, because this series has become a convoluted mess that cant seem to decide if it wants to be a serious science fiction series or a night time soap opera.

What Worked

Nearly the entire cast was utilized in a meaningful fashion, and it was great to see the dearly departed characters reappear in the new timeline. I actually do really like the alternate timeline; in fact, I would have preferred for this to be the new reality instead of dealing with both. But thats just me. Ive grown a bit weary of the old conflicts and love triangles.

What Didnt Work

Do the writers really expect viewers to believe Juliet survived the detonation of an atomic bomb, just inches away from her head? I know that this whole storyline was included in order to give her the chance to do a proper goodbye, but it was already done in the season finale last May. It was redundant. I like Elizabeth Mitchell as an actress, and I felt Juliet was a great character, but the scenes with Juliet here were just pointless.

Giving Credit Where Credit is Due

LA X" was written by Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof. It was directed by Jack Bender. Lost stars Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Terry OQuinn, Josh Holloway, Jorge Garcia, and Michael Emerson.

"Lost" airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.