‘Felicity’ Returns Just in Time for a Long Goodbye

The WB’s “Felicity” is back from a winter hiatus with a new episode tonight at 9, but the return is a bittersweet one.

Although the smart writing and sensitive portrayals that have made the show such a pleasure to watch for much of the last four seasons are still firmly in evidence, last month’s news that the network was pulling the plug on the drama hangs over the proceedings like the death sentence that it is.

One small consolation is that the series will be allowed go out with a measure of dignity in a two-hour finale May 22. And it will take every minute of those two hours to draw satisfactory conclusions to the romantic entanglements and career yearnings of Felicity (the still-luminous Keri Russell) and company.

Many observers think the series lost its way when co-creator J.J. Abrams left to work on ABC’s “Alias.” But it could also be that a series tracing the lives of a group of likable college students from freshmen to seniors has simply run its course after four years.

The critically acclaimed show set a WB record when it premiered in September 1998, drawing 7.1 million viewers. This season, it has averaged 3.3 million.

Yet if you tune in tonight, you’ll see that “Felicity” still works.

The episode, “Future Shock,” hits the ground running when Ben (Scott Speedman) learns that there will be lingering consequences from his one-night dalliance four months earlier with Lauren (Lisa Edelstein).

Yes, a baby is on the way, but Ben exhausts all avenues of denial until there’s nothing left to do but break the news to the woman he really loves, namely that lucky gal Felicity.

The other cast members are too consumed with their own personal crises to take much notice, however.

It’s going to be an interesting few weeks to the finish.