Lost returns on January 31st

No wonder why no one can find the island: “Lost” is moving once again, heading to Thursday nights at the end of January.

“Lost” returns Jan. 31 – the first night of February sweeps – at 9 p.m., while “Grey’s Anatomy” goes on hiatus.

Meanwhile, having depleted original pre-Writers Guild episodes, much of the Alphabet’s fall crop of dramas haven’t been given regular time slots. Instead, skeins like “Pushing Daisies,” “Private Practice,” “Dirty Sexy Money” and “Women’s Murder Club” will rotate in a Friday night drama encore wheel .

Moves were revealed Friday afternoon, as ABC took the wraps off its long-anticipated midseason strategy.

As strike contingency, Alphabet web will rely heavily on original scripted skeins that had been sitting on the bench, as well as new and returning reality skeins.

In moving “Lost” to Thursday, Alphabet is looking to maintain some adults 18-49 dominance on the night. Skein will fill the plum “Grey’s Anatomy” spot effective Jan. 31; “Grey’s” won’t have a regular time slot through at least March, but will likely show up on Friday nights, where Alphabet will air a wheel of drama repeats.

ABC will have eight episodes of “Lost,” which were penned pre-strike. Original plan, of course, was to run the series’ entire 16-episode third season straight through. But even with a truncated order, net decided that pent-up demand for the show was too great to delay it in the same way Fox held off on “24.”

Plus, “Lost” is too much of a midseason power player for ABC to pass up – and by moving it to Thursday, the most desirable night of the week for advertisers, Alphabet can cushion the blow of losing “Grey’s” originals on the night.

Net’s Thursday sked will remain mostly the same through January, but will shake up Jan. 31 – when the net brings back “Lost” and uses that event to launch another newcomer at 10 p.m., “Eli Stone.”

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