I have always been a huge fan of the TV show Lost so it is with some regret that I noticed that this week’s episode reached the series’ lowest audience to date: 8.82 million viewers.

While the show started strongly, with the second season premiere attracting more viewers than any episode during the first season, it seems that the series began to lose viewers during the middle of the second season, and then continued dropping thereafter.

The large gap in the middle of the third season is a the 12 weeks hiatus the series was put on, as a result of the decision to present new episodes back to back during two blocks in the fall and early spring. The second block was also coupled with a timeslot change, from 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. These moves seem to have lowered the show’s audience substantially, with no episodes during this second block attracting over 15 million viewers.

The fourth season began late, about six months after the conclusion of the third season, partly as a result of the writers’ strike of 2007, which also shortened the series’ lifespan to 14 episodes. Still, the show returned to a 9:00 p.m. timeslot, which is why perhaps the initial episodes reached over the 15 million viewer mark, but after the midle of the season, the show began to lose audience.

The fifth and current season premiered about this January, after a six months absence, which in retrospect may have been too long. This season’s premiere of 13 million viewers was its lowest by far, and the episodes to date have also demonstrated a clear trend towards declining viewership.

Why has this audience drop occurred? Besides irregular scheduling and long absences, it seems to me that the show’s ability to maintain a mass audience has been adversely affected by its convoluted plot line. This style attracts many viewers such as myself, and is best explained by the show’s creator, J.J. Abrams, in this TED video.

[ted id="205"]

While many enjoy the mysteries, ‘mythology,’ and complex character relationships inherent to Lost, it demands such intense attention that it also seems to drive other viewers away. Besides alienating frustrated viewers, it seems to me that Lost has a bigger problem- attracting new viewers. Even with a relatively complex show like 24 a new viewer can tune in at the beginning of a season with relative ease, and enjoy the plotline almost as much as veteran viewer who has been watching the program since its inception. In the case of Lost, it is very difficult to come in at the beginning of any season past the second and feel welcome since there are so many groups and histories (Oceanic Survivors A, Oceanic Survivors B, Dharma Initiative, The Others, Charles Whitmore’s organization, etc.). Plus since last season with the time travel you have different chronological timelines that you have to track. Try explaining all this to a newbie, and as great as ABC has done with it’s Lost recaps and explanations, tragically it seems that the show’s style is inherently constructed to increase churn. However, I am sure that I’m not alone in saying that I’ll continue watching every episode.