Last night's debut of The Leftovers on HBO marked Damon Lindelof's return to TV, and viewers are already buzzing about the Lost co-creator's new show. If you missed the premiere, you can watch the entire first episode via Yahoo Screen — even if you're not an HBO subscriber. Based on a bestselling novel by Tom Perrotta, The Leftovers begins three years after millions of people mysteriously vanish without any explanation. Two percent of the world's population is suddenly gone, and everyone who remains is still trying to cope with what happened.
The series, adapted for TV by Lindelof and Perrotta (with Lindelof serving as showrunner), is already off to a strong and intriguing start. HBO hopes it can pull in decent-sized audience while the network's other hits like Game of Thrones and True Detective are on break. And if getting people hooked is the goal, giving away the first episode is always a smart way to get there. Better still, the free stream isn't limited to the United States; it's working just fine in Europe as well.