"Lie To Me" Vs. "Lost" in the ratings grudge match of, uh, the year week night

With "American Idol" as its lead-in, "Lie to Me" actually outranked the return of "Lost" last night, 13.19 million to 11.65 million in the 9 p.m. hour. So they're no doubt pretty happy over on the Fox lot today, but here's guessing the celebration is somewhat muted, given:

* "Lie to Me" lost half its "AI" lead-in audience;

* "Lie to Me" lost 3.5 million viewers over the course of its hour.

(In next week's action-packed episode of "Lie to Me," Tim Roth goes undercover as a bellhop at a swanky hotel where people dissemble a lot. Then he remembers that that in and of itself is not against the law. Mayhem ensues.)

Meanwhile, "Lost" continued to inspire the usual amount of head-scratching. About a million viewers drifted away over the course of its two-hour premiere, which was already nearly 5 million fewer than when it returned last season. Still, for a show that willfully obscure, those are pretty good numbers.

(I have it on almost-good authority that the above image has a crucial bearing on next week's episode of "Lost." Pore over it, divine its mysteries, debate amongst yourselves and solve the enigma behind the time-trotting island and how Charles Widmore and Richard Alpert are connected!)