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ABC's highly successful TV show, "Lost," may be an apt description for how a new viewer might feel when happening across this oddly plotted breakout show. Who is who and what is their connection to each other? How do they fit into the show's plotline? Here's a beginner's guide to the major characters on "Lost."

If you are a new viewer, don't feel badly; even diehard fans have difficulty staying on top of all the diverse characters, their mysterious disappearances or their deaths.

Depending upon when you happened across the show (it debuted in the fall of 2004) you will have been introduced to at least a dozen major recurring characters that have continued to appear over the past 3 years.

The Major Characters (in order of relative importance):

Jack Shephard: An L.A. spinal surgeon forced into the role of leader and hero. He has always had a thing for Kate (see below). The first show opened with a shot of a disoriented Jack in a business suit surveying the wreckage of Oceanic Flight 815. He is plagued by inner demons that include a relationship with his estranged father and his ex-wife.

Kate Austern: The show's bad girl with a good heart. She was being transported by a federal officer who had arrested her for murder. She is in the middle of a love triangle between herself, Jack and Sawyer (see below). Everyone was waiting to see which one she would sleep with first; she chose Sawyer. She's tough, handles herself well under pressure, can track an animal or a human and uses a gun with ease.

James "Sawyer" Ford: This is one of Lost's lovable villains; viewers love him in spite of his nasty attitude and utter lack of compassion. He is at best a conniver and at worst, an enterprising capitalist. Sawyer has a past full of skeletons, too. But unlike Jack, Sawyer has no compunctions about killing another human. He is deeply interested in Kate (although he remains emotionally distant) and is usually at odds with Jack.

John Locke: This is the most enigmatic character on the series. When he crash-landed on the island, he had been unable to walk. But the island's mysterious powers returned his ability to walk. He is the show's philosopher; he is extremely skilled in the bush; when he makes a decision, he sticks to it. He comes complete with his own issues including a rotten tomcat of a father, and a boring life back home.

Sayid Jarrah: Sayid is all sex appeal but the only woman on the show he connected with (Shannon) was killed. Sayid is an Iraqi military man, who is always

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