Let's talk 'Lost': Jan. 31 episode

At long last, we've seen the premiere! Did it live up to your expectations? Can you predict where the next seven episodes are headed? Let's waste no time in kicking off our first Lost discussion of the year.

Potential fuel for the conversation:

- Who are the rest of the "Oceanic Six"?

- What do you think of the "flash-forwards" so far?

- Did you pick up any clues the rest of us may have overlooked?

This is a very popular discussion, so let's try to make it as useful as possible: Be thoughtful before you post a comment, and try not to duplicate previous observations. Be respectful of other commenters. If you share a spoiler, politely warn us first.

Have fun, and go to ABC.com Friday to watch the episode again. Check back Monday for a "best of the comments" roundup.

From bloggers' ears to yours

I know the time for "best of 2007" lists has passed, but the Hype Machine has just done something cool with bloggers' picks for last year's best music. The 2007 Music Zeitgeist takes data from blogs and organizes it by the top 50 songs, albums and bands.

Click around to hear most of the songs, and you can discover new blogs based on what music you like. Pop Candy, of course, is included in the mix.

In terms of the top vote-getters, Arcade Fire is named the No. 1 band, and Radiohead snags the top album. I'm loving the songs section, which includes several tracks I missed.

The castaways' musical accompaniments

All day people have been asking me about the Lost "music videos" that aired during last night's episode. Here's the one for Sawyer -- it features Josh Holloway swaggering to Bad to the Bone. Kate's ad is set to Fiona Apple's Criminal. Locke's clip, available at ABC.com, uses Patsy Cline's Crazy.

As you can tell, the network went for the most obvious musical choices. If I were making one for Desmond, I might've selected Elvis Costello's Man Out of Time. Charlie? Maybe Huey Lewis and the News' I Want A New Drug, or (a nicer choice) Aimee Mann's Save Me.

Feel free to offer more musical suggestions in the comments. The premiere is mere hours away.

Meet Bill Hader, book critic

Most of you recognize Bill Hader from Saturday Night Live and Superbad, but did you know he's a huge fan of sci-fi and horror novels?

Here are a few of his book recommendations. If the writers' strike lasts much longer, I think Hader could have a future in literary criticism -- his funny reviews make me want to check out some of these titles.

On R.A. Lafferty's Nine Hundred Grandmothers: "You get such a sense of joy and boundless imagination in every sentence ... You get that feeling when you see a Flaming Lips show. It’s not like we’re dark and hurt and twisted. It’s like, 'I've got blood on my face -- come on, y'all, this is awesome."

On Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box: "On the surface, I could see the bad Hollywood movie version of this book: They cast some groan-worthy rocker dude who looks like Glenn Danzig and some really hot goth girl: "We’re going to fight a ghost!"

Thanks to Angelo F. for the tip.

A very memorable commute

I just spent five minutes trying to think of one exciting thing that's happened to me on public transportation, and I came up empty.

These folks jump on the Tube in London one day, and guess what happens? They're treated to an impromptu performance of the Thriller dance. This would never happen in D.C. Thanks to Karen E. for the tip.

Monopoly goes worldwide

A new "global edition" of Monopoly is in the works, and Hasbro is asking fans to help make the board.

Over on the game's website, you can nominate and vote for which cities should make the final cut. An interactive map shows the destinations that are in the lead; Boston, New York, Chicago, Las Vegas and Washington, D.C. are among the American spots. (The only annoying thing is that you have to sign in to the site.)

Personally, I'm pulling for some of the underdogs, like Bratislava, Slovakia, and Riga, Latvia. The 20 cities with the highest votes on Feb. 29 make it onto the board. Two "wildcard cities" will be announced March 9.

Be serenaded by your dessert

The other day I received something that seems to define "Pop Candy" in the most literal sense: a singing box of chocolates.

This Valentine's Day, Whitman's has created a sampler that plays music when you open it. "The Music Heart" contains a dozen candies and an equally sugary pop song by blond crooner David Martin called Something in Your Eyes. Aww. It's available online or at Walgreen's.

Wouldn't it be cool if you could buy candy with a variety of songs or, better yet, customize it with your own tune? Perhaps it's only a matter of time ...

Catch some island-related video

Here's a cool compilation of Lost-related videos you may have missed. It includes the clip Josh Holloway, Evangeline Lilly and others made for the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, a Lost-meets-Friends parody, Jorge Garcia's Letterman appearance and more.

Reminder: A discussion about tonight's episode begins as soon as the episode ends, around 10 ET.

Gondry swedes himself

Michel Gondry's new movie, Be Kind Rewind, introduces us to the concept of "sweding," which replaces famous films with home movies. It already looks hilarious in the trailer, but the director takes it a step further by sweding his own preview.

There's nothing sweeter than seeing Gondry dress up as Mos Def and Jack Black ... and speak their dialogue in a French accent. The movie opens Feb. 22.

Pop forum: Talk amongst yourselves

Are you ready to meet today's featured reader? When  you're done, feel free to chat about pop culture in the comments.

Reader of the day: torifan

Real name: Marty
Why I chose my screen name: I'm a huge Tori Amos fan.
Where I live: Richmond, Va.
Occupation: Customer support
Blog: www.martyscreativehome.blogspot.com

My 15 minutes of fame: I've written two novels: The Sensation Inside and Fearscape

My celebrity crush: Brad Pitt (the perfect man!)