On newsstands nowish is the May 2009 issue of Wired, which was put together with the help of Guest Editor JJ Abrams. You won’t find any spoilers for Lost, but you will find plenty of teasers and cheeky references to all of Abrams’ works, including our favorite island-based show, Alias, Fringe, Cloverfield, and of course, Star Trek. The issue is chocked full of the kinds of stuff that Lost fans and Abrams fans go ga-ga over (there are even hidden easter eggs in the issue), and I highly recommend picking it up.

Probably the best part of the issue is the cover story (which the Wired folks have been kind enough to post online in its entirety), written entirely by Abrams himself, in which he talks about the power of mystery, and how the Internet Age has all but destroyed the wonder of discovery. From Abrams’ essay:

People often ask me how Lost is going to end… I always wonder, do they really want to know? And what if I did tell them? They might have an aha moment, but without context… The experience — the setup for a joke’s punch line, the buildup to a magic trick’s big flourish — is as much of a thrill as the result. There’s discovery to be made and wonder to be had on the journey that not only enrich the ending, but in many ways define it.

I also like this bit, regarding the evils of spoilers:

The real damage isn’t so much that the secret gets out. It’s that the experience is destroyed. The illusion is diminished. Which may not matter to some. But then what’s the point of actually seeing that movie or episode? How does knowing the twist before you walk into the theater — or what that island is really about before you watch the finale — make for a richer viewing experience? It’s telling that the very term itself — spoiler — has become synonymous with “cool info you can get before the other guy.” What no one remembers is that it literally means “to damage irreparably; to ruin.”

Hit the link for the full article, or pick up the issue to get all of the Abramsy goodness. But be warned: there’s some NSFW language in that article (and in fact, the whole issue). Here’s a video from Wired.com that features Abrams and a couple of the mag’s editors discussing the May issue.

Image: Copyright 2009 ©Conde Nast Publications.

Fringe is back this week after Fox put it on hiatus to make way for the juggernaut that is American Idol. Fringe is co-created by Lost’s co-creator JJ Abrams, and his Star Trek writers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. Abrams and his partners have promised some big answers in the remaining episodes of this first season of the show, and anyone who’s been watching knows that the stakes have gradually raised higher and higher as the season has gone on. Look for the various threads of the show to start coming together soon, starting with Tuesday night’s episode, titled “Inner Child.” Here’s what Fox has to say about the episode:

“Inner Child”

Just seconds before a building is demolished, a mysterious mute child that has been living alone underground is discovered. When the FBI’s Fringe Division investigates, the boy forms an unspoken connection with Agent Olivia Dunham. Meanwhile, an especially gruesome serial killer resurfaces and showcases his “artistry” by displaying his work publicly. As the boy gradually assimilates into a new environment, Olivia and the team must race against the clock to prevent the mad man from further macabre.

Fringe airs Tuesdays at 9:00pm EST/PST.

Image: ©2009 Fox Broadcasting Co.

ApproachingLOST.com has covered bits and pieces of Fringe in the past. (And in case you didn’t know, Fringe is television’s other mythology-laden/pseudo-scifi TV show by Lost co-creator JJ Abrams, this one following a special FBI unit’s attempts to uncover a global conspiracy involving fringe science. It airs Tuesday nights on Fox.)

So today I put it to you: would you like to see ApproachingLOST.com cover Fringe in earnest?

n

Image: Copyright 2008 ©Fox Broadcasting.

J.J. Abrams recently chatted with the Suicide Girls about the success of Fringe and whether he’ll run things the same as Lost.

First off he clarifies that it is not just HE that did Lost. “It’s not me alone … In cases like Lost, it’s not me now at all. It’s Damon and Carlton [Cuse] running that show. In the case of something like Fringe, Alex and Bob and I sat in a room and came up with this together.”

Abrams continues, saying that a main difference between Lost and Fringe is the “complication” factor. He says that Lost has a reputation of being a complicated show - one that requires viewers to watch every episode. While Fringe has an overall arching story line, the shows don’t have to be in order. “You don’t have to watch episodes one, two and three to tune into episode four.”

“This show you have a different sort of paradigm,” Abrams continues. “Week to week there will be stories. You can tune in and just watch that, but there will be, over the course of a season, and then the series itself, bigger arcs of story. So I think we’re trying very diligently to be a show that doesn’t require the kind of insane absolute dedication to a series that if you miss an episode, you truly have no idea what’s going on.”

Abrams says that the Fringe five-year plan is mapped out. Seven years is just too much to wrap his head around! And will he demand an end date like Lost? Abrams says that he thinks once they see where the show is going there will be a place that they might ask for an end date so they can tell the story right. “Because I do worry on a show like Fringe that if we don’t have the opportunity to really know the pace at which we should be telling our story, it could become one of those things.”

Check out the promotional trailer for the new JJ Abrams’ Fox series Fringe that is set to premiere this fall on Tuesday nights. What do you think?