At this week's Television Critics Association winter press tour, J.J. Abrams had both good news and bad news (for some) surrounding Fringe.

First, he talked as though the series is most definitely returning for a third season, an announcement Fox has yet to officially make, yet a no-brainer for fans of what's become an engrossing drama.

But Abrams also hinted at a possible end date for Fringe, as he's witnessed the creative resurgence such a decision allowed for on his best-known creation, Lost.

"Just as with Lost, we didn't get to a place until the third season where we were saying, 'OK, we need to know where halfway is,'" Abrams said. "If we're lucky enough to continue going, I do think that at a certain point it would be a really smart thing to start to say, 'OK, let's figure out ... what the actual date is so we sort of know... how far we should push things.'"

Amen, J.J. Does anyone out there wish to see Fringe become The X-Files, Fox's last great sci-fi show, which hung on far too long and devolved into meandering mediocrity by series end?

Any decision on a series finale date won't come for awhile, of course, as Fringe is just starting to find its ratings footing on Thursday night.

Meanwhile, Abrams did at least drop a few spoilers for the remainder of the season, most notable among them his response to whether or not Leonard Nimoy would return as William Bell

"Without saying either way, I think there's a chance he'll be back."

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.