Action/adventure Archives

Posted at 7 a.m. Wednesday, May 6

EARTH FINAL CONFLICT: SEASON ONE
$40 for 22 episodes
Tune in or out? out of four.

This is a special treat for “Star Trek” fans. “Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry came up with this series, but it wasn’t developed until after his 1997 death. The syndicated series pit the people of Earth against alien visitors who claim to be helpful, but, well, that would be boring. Von Flores and Lisa Howard play humans who work for the alien Taelons, but also are part of the human resistance. Extras include and intro by “Rod” Roddenberry, Gene’s son; six episode commentaries and a making-of featurette. Seasons 3, 4 and 5 are already out on DVD, released by another company.

Philip Winchester and Tongayi Chirisa in "Crusoe." NBC photo

CRUSOE
$30 for 13 episodes
Tune in or out? out of four.

I didn’t hate NBC’s period adventure based on Daniel Defoe’s novel as much as, well, everyone else did. The foolish romp of a show was beautifully filmed in South Africa, didn’t take itself too seriously and offered MacGyver-like gadgetry and a lot of adventure. And hello, two buff, mostly shirtless guys (Philip Winchester and Tongayi Chirisa) hanging out in a treehouse? I’m in. A paperback of the novel is included with other extras.

Posted at 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 21

CAPRICA
Out on DVD Tuesday
Tune in or out? out of four.

The “Battlestar Galactica” prequel series won’t begin airing on Sci Fi Channel until 2010, but the network is giving the 90-minute movie pilot an early DVD release to keep fans excited. And they should be.

Posted at 1:10 p.m. Monday, April 20

Host Phil Keoghan and the “Amazing Race” casting directors are coming to the Chicago area this weekend looking to possible competitors for “Amazing Race 15.”

Anyone interested in auditioning for “the reality TV adventure of a lifetime and wanting to travel around the world” should come to the open casting call this Friday in Joliet.

You can find more details and fill out the application at the CBS2 Chicago Web Site. Applicants must bring the completed application, photos, and passports (or proof of appliance) to the audition. You must be 21 years of age or older to audition.

“Amazing Race 15” open casting call
When: 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday, April 24
Where: Harrah’s Joliet, 151 N. Joliet St., Joliet

Posted at 4:45 p.m. Sunday, Apirl 12

LESTER wants you to save "Chuck."

It’s Chuck Versus the Network Pick-Up time, people. The wonderfully fun NBC comedy “Chuck” has just three episodes left in its excellent, awesome, amazing sophomore season. And we want it to be renewed.

Vik Sahay, who plays Chuck’s duplicitous Buy More workmate Lester Patel, wouldn’t tell any secrets about the last three episodes, but he did say what’s coming is exciting.

“I had been hearing [creator] Josh Schwartz talk about a game-changer before I knew what was happening at the end of the season,” Sahay said. “I thought, ‘What could that be?’ When I read it and started shooting it, I thought, ‘Yes this is a game-changer.’”

Posted at 4:25 p.m. Sunday, April 12

"Chuck" returns at 7 p.m. Monday on NBC. HELP SAVE "CHUCK"

Fans of “Chuck” can expect a return engagement from the hilariously bad musical misfits Jeffster before Season 2 is over. Just don’t expect an EP from the two actors who play band members Jeff and Lester.

“As much as performing like that is terrifying for Lester, it’s 10 times as terrifying for one Vik Sahay,” Sahay told me during a recent phone interview. “That would just be an odd one.”

The Canadian actor, who plays Lester opposite Scott Krinsky’s Jeff on the NBC comedy, said neither of the actors has had musical training. Sahay doesn’t even play Rock Band in his spare time—or does he?

“I do many, many things in the privacy of my own home that I never intend to be public,” he joked. “Let’s leave it at that.”

Posted at 7:55 a.m. Wednesday, April 8

HARPER’S ISLAND
9 p.m. Thursday, CBS
Tune in or out? out of four.

Posted at 3 a.m. Monday, April 6

Give a guy a superpower and suddenly he wants to be TV’s next action hero.

James Kyson Lee thinks it’s high time his “Heroes” character, Ando Masahashi, started flexing more muscle.

“I think he has the potential to be a more actiony character,” Lee told me during an exclusive interview on Friday. “And I’m pretty athletic in real life, so I’d love to incorporate some of that.”

Posted at 5:45 p.m. Sunday, April 5, 2009

Isn’t it just Chuck Bartowski’s luck that he finds a dream job at the company run by his long-time computer-genius hero, but things go horribly wrong?

I’m not telling any fans of my favorite current TV comedy anything they don’t already know, but that genius, Ted Roark, is played by Chevy Chase. And Ted is not quite what Chuck (Zachary Levi) expected.

Posted at 4:52 p.m. Friday, April 3

Anil Kapoor of “Slumdog Millionaire” will cross paths with Jack Bauer on “24.”

Kapoor will play a Middle Eastern leader who comes to the U.S. on a peacemaking mission during Season 8 of the action series, Fox has announced. It is the Bollywood film star’s first American TV role. The prominent Indian actor played game show host Prem Kumar in “Slumdog Millionaire.”

The current season of “24” resumes Monday when Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) and the FBI get ready for a standoff with Starkwood, the private military firm run by Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight). Jack’s getting sicker by the minute after being exposed to a lethal pathogen.

Posted at 4:52 p.m. Friday, April 3

Anil Kapoor of “Slumdog Millionaire” will cross paths with Jack Bauer on “24.”

Kapoor will play a Middle Eastern leader who comes to the U.S. on a peacemaking mission during Season 8 of the action series, Fox has announced. It is the Bollywood film star’s first American TV role. The prominent Indian actor played game show host Prem Kumar in “Slumdog Millionaire.”

The current season of “24” resumes Monday when Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) and the FBI get ready for a standoff with Starkwood, the private military firm run by Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight). Jack’s getting sicker by the minute after being exposed to a lethal pathogen.

Posted at 2:45 p.m. Monday, March 30

Imagine this guy (Andy Whitfield, left) in a toga, and you can bet Lucy Lawless will be after him in “Spartacus.” Starz photo/Sci Fi photo

Is Lucy Lawless picking up her sword again?

The former “Xena: Warrior Princess” star has been cast in Starz’ new action series, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” the network announced today. The “Spartacus” series is set in 73 B.C. Spartacus was a slave who led a revolt against the Roman Republic.

Posted at 2:45 p.m. Monday, March 30

Imagine this guy (Andy Whitfield, left) in a toga, and you can bet Lucy Lawless will be after him in “Spartacus.” Starz photo/Sci Fi photo

Is Lucy Lawless picking up her sword again?

The former “Xena: Warrior Princess” star has been cast in Starz’ new action series, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” the network announced today. The “Spartacus” series is set in 73 B.C. Spartacus was a slave who led a revolt against the Roman Republic.

Posted at 4:15 p.m. Saturday, March 21

THE COLOR OF MAGIC
7 p.m. Sunday, ION
Tune in or out? out of four.

Based on author Terry Pratchett’s book series “Discworld,” this uneven British import is one fantasy I don’t want to have. When failed wizardry student Rincewind (David Jason) is assigned to guide bumbling tourist Twoflower (Sean Astin) around the city-state of Ankh Morpork, they encounter evil wizards, dragons, barbarians, a flying space turtle and a star that threatens to destroy Discworld. Unfortunately, some second-rate effects and awful writing makes their adventures jump from silly to exciting to dull.

NOTE: The video clip above is from when “Color of Magic” aired in Britain.

Posted at 11:30 a.m. Monday, March 16

Will Forte isn’t the only guy in Hollywood who loves “MacGyver.”

The secret agent man with a plan is coming to the big screen, says The Hollywood Reporter.

“We think we're a stick of chewing gum, a paper clip and an A-list writer away from a global franchise,” said Richard Brener of New Line, the studio working on the big screen remake of the iconic 1980s series.

The ABC adventure show starred Richard Dean Anderson as Angus MacGyver, a secret agent of sorts who was able to diffuse bombs and make other gadgets to save the day out of everyday objects such as chewing gum and a paper clip. Forte has been lampooning the show for two years in his “MacGurber” skits on “Saturday Night Live.” Anderson appeared in the most recent ones on March 7, 2009.

Anderson is not attached to the movie project, says the Reporter. Raffaella De Laurentiis is producing the film with Martha De Laurentiis and original series creator Lee Zlotoff.

Watch my fave MacGuber skits by clicking this link.

Posted at 10:50 p.m. Friday, March 6, 2009

“Star Trek” spawned four spin-off and one animated series, 10 movies, dozens of books and on May 8, a relaunch by J.J. Abrams of epic proportions.

Beam me up already.

The latest and most awesome trailer is opening screenings of “Watchmen” in theaters this weekend. I can only imagination how amazing it looks on the big screen. I’m giddy as a schoolgirl watching it on my computer—for the 20th time. (Click to Apple to see it in hi-def.)

We see Starfleet Capt. Pike convincing a rebellious James T. Kirk to enlist. There are amazing shots of skydiving in space, a planet imploding and boffo, bruising space battles.

Then comes the goose-bumps-for-geeks moment: a bloodied Cadet Kirk sits in the captain’s chair for the first time as he takes control of the Enterprise.

And for anyone who’s sniping about Chris Pine not living up to William Shatner’s bed-hopping bravura, just check out Pine’s sexy two-fingered salute to Zoe Saldana’s Uhura. Looks like he’s doing just fine.

Check out the earlier trailers HERE, and then tell me what you think. Will Abrams, Pine, Saldana, Zachary Quinto (Spock), Simon Pegg (Scotty), Karl Urban (McCoy) and Anton Yelchin (Chekov) boldly take us where no “Star Trek” fan has gone before?

Posted at 9:45 a.m. Thursday, March 5

JEFFREY DONOVAN IN CHICAGO

After two seasons, “Burn Notice” fans will get the answer they’ve been waiting for: Who ended Michael Weston’s spy career.

“The actual person who burned me, you’re actually going to meet in the season finale,” star Jeffrey Donovan (above) told reporters recently, before adding a big ol’ “but”: “He's going to have answers that will only satisfy people halfway. Dealing with any kind of covert organization, they can't ever spill the beans totally.”

USA Network’s hit spills plenty of news to satisfy fans, not to mention tons of gunfire, explosions and car crashes. The Season 2 finale, airing at 9 p.m. Thursday, is an action-packed thrill ride.

Donovan’s Weston teams up with Victor (Michael Shanks), the man who tried to kill him, to take on both Victor’s boss and Michael’s ruthless handler, Carla (Tricia Helfer, left).

“It's no surprise that Carla and Michael were going to eventually be in each other's crosshairs,” Donovan said. "In the final episode, literally, that happens. She has powers above her that control her and she basically relies on Michael to save her butt at the end. And he tries but it doesn’t go as well as expected for her.”

It’s one of several showdowns that puts Michael’s pals Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) and Sam (Bruce Campbell), as well as his mother, Madeline (Sharon Gless), in peril. Michael has to make some tough choices.

“You see Michael go to depths of pain that we’ve never seen him show before,” Donovan said.

Although the finale ends one chapter of Michael’s story, it doesn’t close the book. Meeting the person who burned him—played by a favorite Chicago actor, by the way—doesn’t release him from the perils of his career.

“That’s what Season 3 is going to really focus on, who in his past is a threat to his livelihood,” Donovan said, adding that we’ll see more of his rocky relationship with Fiona.

“We love exploring the kind of push-pull attraction that we have for one another, but I think you'll probably see more of Michael and Fiona trying not to be together,” he said.

Donovan talked about working with his co-stars, Michael’s motivations and what else he’s up to. Click the link below for more.

Posted at 1:40 p.m. Sunday, March 1

Did Fox’s “24” predict the future? Hillary Clinton might wish it so.

Years before Barack Obama was elected as the first black president of the U.S., Dennis Haysbert played President David Palmer on the long-running action series.

Now “24” has a woman in the Oval Office, but Cherry Jones (left), who plays President Allison Taylor, doesn’t think she’s paving the way for the first real female president.

“I don't think the way needs to be paved anymore, quite honestly," the Tony Award-winner told reporters recently. "I think the country has suddenly shifted into looking for people of merit and obviously charisma. We're still suckers for charisma.”

Jones’ President Taylor is idealistic, demanding and charismatic. Jones has no idea what Taylor’s party affiliation is ("I've been quoted as saying my hair's Republican. I'm not sure. The jury's still out."), but she said she thought about former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt and former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir to shape her character.

“And I threw in a smattering of John Wayne every once in a while just to get through a scene,” Jones said.

She needed to channel John Wayne for the upcoming episodes. In previews to Monday’s 7 p.m. ep, the White House comes under attack and Jack Bauer is the only person who can save the president.

According to Jones, she believed it was Jack Bauer, not series star Kiefer Sutherland, on set with her. The actor is that intense, she said.

“He’s completely focused and you feel the dire nature of the situation. And you don’t have to work very hard, you’re just there with him,” she said. “And then as soon as it’s over and you’re off the stage he’s the most delightful, enjoyable, generous, delicious young man around.

“But, on that stage he’s absolutely intensity personified.”

Jones has had to use some of that intensity herself. Since the premiere, Taylor has taken some tough, unpopular stands. She’s ordered the liberation of the fictional country of Sangala and refused to negotiate with terrorists—even after they caused an airline collision and kidnapped her husband. She’s also dealing with the recent death of her son and the estrangement of her daughter.

“I am an idealistic person, and I love that she’s taking a stand,” Jones said, saying later that she wanted viewers to “see the mask of grief” on Taylor’s face caused by all the personal troubles.

“I didn’t want to look like some Hollywood person playing the President,” Jones said. “I wanted to kind of look a little bit like [bleep.] I wanted her to look exhausted, and I do.”

Posted at 3:20 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25

Patricia Kalember and Jeffrey Donovan perform a scene from "Don't Dress for Dinner" last November at the Royal George Theatre. Nuccio DiNuzzo/Tribune
Donovan (below) tries to keep warm in Chicago's January chill. Bill Hogan/Tribune

Jeffrey Donovan really, really doesn’t miss Chicago.

“Not at all,” the “Burn Notice” star told me Wednesday, laughing.

Donovan spent the past winter starring in “Don’t Dress for Dinner” at the Royal George Theatre, but he’s one spy who's happy to come in from the cold to talk about his Miami-filmed USA network espionage hit airing at 9 p.m. Thursday.

“Great town. Great people,” he said of the Windy City. “But man, 31 below zero I am not a fan of. I couldn’t believe it—31 below zero. I think that’s illegal. I think that’s against the law in some countries.”

Donovan talked to reporters about the upcoming Season 2 finale of “Burn Notice,” working with Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” and what he plans to do on his downtime this year. I’ll have more from the interview on Thursday, so check back.

Posted at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25

So just how did John Locke die on "Lost"? I think we're going to find out tonight. Here are three preview clips. Tune in at 8 p.m. Wednesday to ABC.

Posted at 10:44 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 15

AMY SEDARIS CRACKS UP "THE CLOSER" ON MONDAY.

Chuck and Sarah go from a Valentine’s Day cover date to getting married in the latest episode of NBC’s “Chuck,” airing at 7 p.m. Monday. (It may be dialed by the president.)

The spy pair (Zachary Levi and Yvonne Strahovski) go undercover in the suburbs for their latest assignment. There they meet very interesting neighbors played by guest stars Andy Richter and Jenny McCarthy.

Click the link below for one more clip from the episode, and short interviews with McCarthy and Richter about their roles.

YVONNE STRAHOVSKI AT NEW YORK COMIC CON

Posted at 11 a.m. New York time, Feb. 9

CHUCK VS. COMIC CON, OR OBAMA
"TORCHWOOD" AT COMIC CON

"Fringe" stars John Noble (from left), Joshua Jackson, Anna Torv, Lance Reddick, Blair Brown, Mark Valley, Jasika Nicole and Kirk Acevedo. Only Valley was missing from the Comic Con panel. Fox photo

Fans learned one thing for certain at New York Comic Con’s panel for “Fringe” on Sunday: Fox loves the show.

The network is so into its new hit that it lobbied to get the mysterious “Observer” character, the bald-headed guy who watches all the creepy goings-on and is played by Michael Cerveris, onto the platform when Barack Obama was sworn in as president, executive producer Jeff Pinkner said.

“They spent a lot of time and effort” but ultimately failed, Pinker told the packed house of at least 2,000 fans.

The network did manage to get Cerveris on the sidelines at the New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles divisional playoff game this year, a development that angered star Joshua Jackson, who plays Peter Bishop.

“I don’t mean to be a pissy actor,” said Jackson, who was stuck way up high in the nosebleed section during the game. “But I mean, really Fox? You couldn’t hook a guy up?”

Jackson was the star of the panel, offering the best one-liners and cracking up the audience, who clearly appreciated him. The rest of the panel consisted of Pinkner; Anna Torv (who plays FBI agent Olivia Dunham); John Noble (scientist Walter Bishop); Lance Reddick, Kirk Acevedo and Jasika Nicole (FBI agents); and Blair Brown (a boss at the shady biotech firm Massive Dynamics).

As funny as Jackson was, Pinkner seemed to be in a revealing mood, offering several hints about little extras fans can pick up watching the show.

“There are several little games embedded in the show,” he said. The Observer can be spotted in every single episode, he said, whether or not he is mentioned. Also, every episode contains a clue about the following episode. And those “Pattern” icons that appear before commercial breaks? They’re a code, he said.

“It’s not easy to crack,” he said, “but it ultimately speaks to the larger controlling issues of the show.”

Jackson said that he has such a hard time figuring out the intricate plotlines that he made a flow chart that covered his dressing room wall. The diagram has gotten so big now that he had to take it home, he said.

“I’m such a nerd,” he said. “I’m an actor with a flow chart.”

If you want to know more of the secrets Pinkner and the cast revealed—and what happened in the sneak peek of Tuesday’s episode that we were shown, click the link after the photo below.

Jasika Nicole laughs at Joshua Jackson during the "Fringe" panel. Fox/Getty Images photo

Posted at 7 a.m. Friday, Feb. 6

XIII
8 p.m. Sunday and Feb. 15, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Would sibling politicians belong to two different parties? I guess it could happen, but it seems unlikely to me. Much of this derivative and silly two-part mini is unlikely, which isn’t always a deal-breaker if the story is compelling and the acting is good. Unfortunately, this rip-off of the worst things about “24” and the basic premise of the “Bourne” movies—secret agent shoots the president right in front of her governor brother and thousands of others, conveniently gets that kind of amnesia where he can’t remember who he is but remembers how to do all kinds of high-tech stuff and be a killing machine, then works to stop a corporate/military conspiracy to overthrow the government.

Stephen Dorff makes an OK amnesiac agent, whose only clue to his identity is a “XIII” tattooed on his chest, Val Kilmer, on the other hand, is poorly cast and very bloated as the man sent to shut Dorff up.

Sadly the mini leaves the door open for a sequel. Do yourself a favor, rent the “Bourne” movies and watch them instead.

Kimberly Elise is the best thing about "Gifted Hands." TNT photo

GIFTED HANDS: THE BEN CARSON STORY
7 p.m. Saturday, TNT
Tune in or out? out of four.

Cuba Gooding Jr. (right) gets top billing in this made-for-TV movie about the troubled childhood and meteoric medical rise of Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, a pioneering pediatric neurosurgeon. Yet I’ll remember Kimberly Elise, who shines as his illiterate single mother demanding that her two boys be the best they can be. The inspirational story loses some dramatic steam once Ben grows up and Elise is out of the picture, but it’s still a stirring tale.

THE GOOD WITCH’S GARDEN
8 p.m. Saturday, Hallmark
Tune in or out? out of four.

Catherine Bell (left) returns as the seemingly all-knowing and never flustered Cassie Nightingale of last year’s “The Good Witch.” This time, the witchy woman made peace with most of her neighbors, but when she opens up her home as a bed and breakfast, a mysterious stranger threatens to cause trouble. That may sound like a juicy conflict, but this “Garden” could use a few more exotic flowers. It’s just very exciting.

Posted at 9 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 5

“Big Love” is getting a fourth season, HBO said today. Big bonus: It will begin later this year.

The network currently is airing the drama’s excellent third season, which is averaging nearly 5 million viewers per episode, HBO says.

It tells the story of Bill Henrickson, his three wives Barb, Nicki and Margene, and their eight kids. Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin star.

Over at TNT, the new series “Leverage” has been renewed for a second season, the network said Monday. TNT ordered 15 new episodes of the caper drama that stars Timothy Hutton, Gina Bellman, Christian Kane, Beth Riesgraf and Aldis Hodge.

“Leverage” currently airs at 9 p.m. Tuesdays, drawing an average of 3.2 million viewers per episode. Its second season will begin later this year. Read my review here.

Posted at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3

No, this is not a photo from the wedding of Anna Torv and Mark Valley. It's a scene from Tuesday's "Fringe." Fox photos

A rep for “Fringe” star Anna Torv has confirmed that she has secretly wed Mark Valley, who plays her love interest on the Fox series.

That's surprising news, considering that Valley spoke with me and other reporters last Thursday and failed to mention he and Torv were married.

“I think [Anna] is just a fantastic actor and I really like working with her," he said. "She's my favorite on the show, to be honest with you.”

What else is the guy going to say about his wife, right? According to reports, the two apparently wed over the holidays, and told their co-stars in early January.

On “Fringe,” Valley plays Jon Scott, the former lover and FBI partner to Torv’s agent Olivia Dunham. Scott may or may not be dead; he may or may not be a figment of Dunham’s imagination, and he may or may not be a good guy.

It’s all kind of iffy, which makes Valley’s job a challenge.

“It is challenging trying to think of where he comes from, where he's going, what he's aware of, what is he not aware of, and what does he remember, and what does he not,” Valley said of playing scenes where Dunham imagines Scott is present. “It is sort of taking the character out of the ether and placing him somewhere and trying to figure out how he would react.”

Fans might get an idea of what’s happening with Scott during Tuesday’s 8 p.m. episode called "The Transformation." In it, Dunham and Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) go undercover to investigate another bizarre airplane incident. (Remember the series premiere? What’s with J.J. Abrams and planes?)

Valley said that the upcoming episodes do answer questions that have been bugging him about his character—like who he works for and how he feels about Dunham. As for Scott’s motivations, Valley calls him “a real believer.”

"I think he’s really serious about what he does, and whoever it is that he is working for, he’s extremely loyal to them,” he said. “Aside from that, I don’t really want to judge it, to be honest with you. … I think that whether he’s good or bad, there’s a degree of guilt that he carries around with him."

For more from Valley, please click the link below.

Posted a 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 1

MORE "CHUCK"; EVEN MORE; STILL MORE; LAST ONE.

CHUCK
CHUCK VERSUS THE THIRD DIMENSION
7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2
Tune in or out? out of four.

NBC follows up Sunday’s Super Bowl 3D experiment with “Chuck Versus the Third Dimension.”

As Chuck’s soon-to-be brother-in-law, Devon, would say: Awesome.

The episode’s excellence has little to do with the 3D effects. In fact, I’m not convinced that Intel’s Tru3D technology, which was used to film “Chuck” and the “Monsters vs. Aliens” movie Sunday, works as well on TV as in movie theaters.

There are several nice 3D tricks—a lingerie-clad Sarah, a doughnut about to be eaten by Big Mike, extra special flashes from Chuck, a knife being thrown. But I wear glasses, and the 3D specs worked best without them, so I had to get close to the screen to really see the effects. (The effects popped more when I watched on my computer.)

“Chuck Versus the Third Dimension” is marvelous in 2D, so don’t fret if you don’t have 3D glasses. The episode offers more hilarious one-liners, pop culture references (pay close attention Monday, “Arrested Development” fans) and heart than many other shows do in a whole season.

And yes, it also offers lingerie-clad Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski). The episode opens with the sexy spy’s jaw-dropping seduction of Chuck (Zachary Levi, stage diving below), who still is reeling after witnessing Sarah kill an unarmed Fulcrum agent in “Chuck Versus Santa Claus.”

Dominic Monaghan gives a bravura performance as boozy rock star Tyler Martin, the target of a group of killers. Chuck is assigned to babysit Tyler, who takes our nerdy hero on a bender that nearly gets both of them killed.

“That’s not such a great idea,” Chuck warns Tyler when he suggests they take two hot women to a hotel room.

“All the best nights of my life have begun with that sentence,” Tyler says.

The secondary plot offers has even greater laughs involving ladies panties, competitive eating, urinal cakes and a contest between ex-con Jimmy Butterman (guest star Jerome Bettis), Lester and Jeff to be Morgan’s plus-one going backstage at Tyler’s concert.

The Buy More scenes prove that Josh Gomez (as Morgan), Scott Krinsky (as Jeff) and Vik Sahay (as Lester) are the show’s weapons of mass hilarity.

MONDAY'S "HOUSE"
MONDAY'S "HEROES"
MONDAY'S "MEDIUM"

Posted at 5:10 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24

Two networks offer up action-adventure miniseries this weekend, but with completely different results.

Ian Porter (Dougray Scott) is running from everyone in "The Diplomat." ION photo

THE DIPLOMAT
6 p.m. Saturday, ION
Tune in or out? out of four.

Warning: Do not attempt to watch this four-hour miniseries in one sitting. It’s good, but not that good. You will regret a marathon viewing, believe me.

Now that we have that out of the way, I recommend you do watch “The Diplomat,” especially if you enjoy character-driven, complicated thrillers and foreign accents. This British-Australian co-production hops from London to Tajikistan to Australia and back as British diplomat Ian Porter (Dougray Scott) is busted for importing heroin.

Whether he’s guilty of that charge or not is beside the point, as his arrest sets off a complicated intrigue that involves several espionage-tale clichés: Russian mobsters, dirty bombs, double agents and a dedicated police officer—Scotland Yard CI Julie Hales (Rachael Blake)—who won’t give up her search for truth.

Anyone fan of the “Bourne” movies or other espionage actioners will figure out a lot of what’s coming in advance, but there are enough twists and turns here to keep you guessing, even if only for a little bit.

The acting is terrific, from Scott and Blake as well as Claire Forlani, who plays Porter’s possibly duplicitous ex-wife, Pippa. Just listening to the Aussie cops assigned to protect Porter and his wife is worth the price of admission.

Just don’t overdose in one sitting.

Scott Porter and Mira Sorvino can't save "The Last Templar." NBC photo

The Last Templar
8 p.m. Sunday and Monday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

"The Last Templar" is unoriginal, outlandish and, at least for the first two of four hours, a completely entertaining lark. Who wouldn't chuckle watching a leggy Mira Sorvino, as sassy archaeologist Tess Chaykin, hop on a horse to chase down a horseman who's stolen religious treasures from New York's Metropolitan Museum?

Once their investigation into the crime leads Tess and FBI agent Sean Daley (Scott Foley) to Turkey, the miniseries shifts from ripping off “The Da Vinci Code” to clumsily stealing from the “Indiana Jones” movies. For a while the action gets so ridiculous even I wasn't buying into it. (Yes, even I need a kernal of realism.) Then the mood shifts again, infusing so much religious yakkity-yak and seriousness into the last hour that it got downright boring.

Not even the lovely chemistry between Sorvino and Foley can save "The Last Templar" from the monotony.

Posted at 7:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 23

Afro Samurai is back in action. Spike TV photos

AFRO SAMURAI: RESURRECTION
9 p.m. Sunday, Spike TV
Tune in or out? out of four.

Fans of anime will love this beautifully done, two-hour movie furthering the story of avenging ninja Afro Samurai.

Samuel L. Jackson returns to voice Afro, as well as his foul-mouthed sidekick Ninja Ninja. Afro battles Kuma (Yuri Lowenthal), the teddy bear-headed warrior from the original “Afro Samurai” series, who’s under the control of Afro’s chief nemesis, Sio, voiced by Lucy Liu. Mark Hamill voices Bin, Sio’s manservant and protector.

In “Resurrection,” Sio hatches a convoluted scheme that involves bringing Afro’s dad and others back to life to kill the big-haired anti-hero. It doesn’t matter how confusing the plot gets, because splattering blood and flying limbs never looked this good.

Click the link below to see more images from "Afro Samurai: Resurrection."

Posted at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22

Sharon Gless, Bruce Campbell, Jeffrey Donovan and Gabrielle Anwar. USA photo

BURN NOTICE
9 p.m. Thursday, USA
Tune in or out? out of four.

This energetic, intelligent and completely entertaining show picks up where we left off last fall; ex-spy Michael Weston (Jeffrey Donovan) is hunting the people who tried to blow him up. But that search doesn’t keep him from juggling all his other responsibilites:

Posted at 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22

There is life after “Lost.” Just ask Dominic Monaghan, who played Charlie on the ABC show. He’s guest-starring as rock star Tyler on NBC’s “Chuck” on Feb. 2.

“I’ve never done comedy before,” he says. He likes it.

Find more clips from the 3D episode by going here and here.

Posted at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21

I missed this news last week, but since I’m on the subject of “Chuck” this morning, I thought I’d share: Scott Bakula is going to play Chuck's dad.

Series creator Josh Schwartz told EW’s Michael Ausiello that Bakula (right) will guest star in at least three episode as Chuck and Ellie’s estranged father.

If you remember, Chuck (Zachary Levi) promised Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) that he’d find their dad before her wedding to Captain Awesome (Ryan McPartlin).

"When he finds him, he's not necessarily a guy who wants to be found," Schwartz told EW. "He's living in a trailer, he's disheveled, he's paranoid and he's claiming constantly that [software billionaire] Ted Roark—who he used to work with—stole all his ideas from him.”

Roark, as I recently reported, will be played by Chevy Chase. The successful mogul has been a hero of Chuck’s since the nerd was a boy. Bakula and Chase will begin their story arcs in April, EW reports.

Because I can’t get enough of NBC’s spy-fi comedy, I figure you can’t either. So here are two video tributes the network as put together—one honoring our hero himself and one honoring the ever-so-lovely CIA agent Sarah (played by the ever-so-lovely Yvonne Strahovski).

Don’t forget, “Chuck” returns at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2, with a 3D episode called "Chuck Versus the Third Dimension."

MORE CHUCK 3D CLIPS.

EVEN MORE CHUCK 3D CLIPS, PLUS WHERE TO GET GLASSES.

Posted at 9:25 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21

“Lost” is back on Wednesday, so ABC is launching “Lost: Showdown,” a weekly opportunity for fans to vote for the ultimate moment from the first four seasons of the series.

The network is asking fans:

Posted at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21

When the spy-fi comedy “Chuck” finally returns to NBC at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2, it’ll be done in 3D, the night after 3D commercials for SoBe Lifewater and the film "Monsters vs. Aliens" air during Super Bowl XLIII.

In "Chuck Versus the Third Dimension," our hero Chuck (Zachary Levi) foils a plan to kill rock star Tyler Martin (Dominic Monaghan of “Lost”). To thank Chuck, Tyler takes him out on the town, which of course leads to trouble.

The episode’s B-story involves the always funny Morgan (Josh Gomez), who wins a pair of backstage passes to Tyler's show and runs a contest among Buy More employees, including Big Mike's (Mark Christopher Lawrence) old football buddy Jimmy (ex NFL player Jerome Bettis), to see who gets to go with him.

Series creator Josh Schwartz told the io9 Web site that one highlight of the 3D episode is seeing Jeff (Scott Krinsky) eat a urinal cake. Can't wait for that!

Fans can get the 3-D glasses for free at SoBe Lifewater displays at retail outlets such as K-Mart, Dollar General, CVS and Target (on Jan. 31). If you don’t want to hunt all over for them, call Pepsi at 1-800-646-2904 and they will send you the glasses.

Shame on NBC for delaying the return of so many shows. For my rant on the subject, click the link after the video below. For more on "Chuck," click here and here.

Posted at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 20

LOST
7 p.m. Wednesday recap episode,
8 p.m. Wednesday Season 5 premiere, ABC
Tune in or out? out of four.

“Lost” roars back to our screens Wednesday with a killer opening ... that just kills me to not blab.

The riveting two-hour Season 5 premiere doesn’t waste any time or dialogue dropping tons of clues for fans. Every answer, of course, opens another can of worms, stirring up even more questions. But within the first few minutes we learn that over the last eight months we’ve been asking the wrong question: Where did the island go when Ben turned that crank deep in the Orchid station?

Sawyer makes the correct query on Wednesday: “So when are we now?”

I have no idea what the answer is—well I do, but I’m probably wrong. It doesn’t matter, though. On Wednesday, “Lost” creators Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse kick off the show’s final 34 hours with a crowded, complicated, chaotic but ultimately satisfying episode.

For more on the new season of “Lost,” click the link after the video below.

Posted at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 20

Wednesday's fifth season premiere of “Lost” will have fans gathered around watercoolers Thursday, dissecting all the new information about the show’s mysterious island. (For more on the premiere, click here.)

But creators Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse already answered one rather dark “Lost” question.

The producers told critics gathered in L.A. that contrary to fan opinion and their own assumptions, Nestor Carbonell (right), who plays Richard Alpert on the ABC show, does not use guyliner.

“When we first saw dailies of Nestor, we said, ‘We gotta talk to him about the eyeliner situation,’” Lindelof said, according to the Denver Post. “But he is completely sans makeup.”

So there you have it. The “true mystery of ‘Lost’,” as Cuse called it, has been revealed.

Posted at 12:15 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 18

Yes, Skeet Ulrich, there is more life in "Jericho." CBS/CW photo

Nuclear explosions, network cancellations, black ops mysteries—nothing can kill the post-apocalyptic series “Jericho.”

After the 2006 thriller was cancelled by CBS fans sent so many nuts—a play off a line in the show—that the network revived it for another half season. It was cancelled again, however. But recently, the CW began airing the old episodes on Sundays.

The big news, however, comes from executive producer Jon Turteltaub, who told If Magazine last week that he’s developing a “Jericho” feature film.

"It would not require you to have seen the TV show, but it gets into life after an event like this on a national scale,” he told the online magazine during a promotional tour for his new CBS thriller, “Harper’s Island.” “It would be the bigger, full-on American version of what’s going on, beyond the town in Jericho."

"Jericho" starred Skeet Ulrich as a resident of a Kansas town that survived a series of nuclear attacks throughout the U.S.

Turtletaub also offered some hope that the TV show might return, saying that the CW repeats of the show are drawing more viewers than the number who watched “Mad Men” on cable.

“If it was like this remarkable success,” he told iF, “they would bring it back.”

We’ll see, but just in case he’s wrong, gets your peanuts ready fans.

Speaking of fans, for anything "Jericho" related, visit the Jericho-Kansas site, which works as a hub for the "Jericho" fan world. How else would I know that Skeet Ulrich's birthday is Tuesday, Jan. 20?

Posted at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7

24
7 p.m. Sunday and Monday, Fox
Tune in or out? out of four.

It’s been almost two years since “24” aired a complete season, just enough time for the writers to come up with a new way to test Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland): The super agent faces down a Senate committee investigating abuses of power and use of unlawful methods—torture, that is—by the disbanded Counter-Terrorist Unit.

“Do not sit there with that smug look on your face and expect me to regret the decisions that I have made,” a defiant Bauer tells a committee member, “because, sir, the truth is I don’t.”

By the end of the first four hours of Season 7 (over two nights), even the staunchest Dove is likely to agree with Bauer.

He’s once again tossed into a ridiculously impossible mission in which baddies are plotting to harm America. FBI agent Renee Walker (Annie Wersching) springs him from the Senate hearings and pleads for help to stop his presumed-dead fellow former agent, Tony Almeida (Carlos Bernard), who has kidnapped a computer whiz and hacked into a government computer system that controls air traffic, water supplies and electrical grids.

It’s familiar territory for Bauer and viewers. But “24” knows how to put its audience in a choke-hold. There are more plot twists and murky machinations in the first hour of “24” than there are prisoners held (unjustly?) by the U.S. at Guantanamo Bay. And although CTU is gone, all our favorite characters return, including brainiac Chloe O’Brian (Mary Lynn Rajskub) and former CTU boss Bill Buchanan (James Morrison).

After setting “24” in L.A. for six years (not including last fall’s TV movie, “24: Redemption”), the series benefits from its move to Washington, D.C. All the players—a female president (Cherry Jones), her paranoid husband (Colm Feore), FBI computer geek Janis Gold (Janeane Garolfalo) and several evil-doers—are within Bauer’s reach.

New setting aside, don’t expect to believe that familiar announcement before each episode that claims “events occur in real time.” In order to enjoy Bauer’s 24-hour adventures, you can’t cling to reality.

Just let every implausible, nail-biting minute rock your Monday nights.

Posted at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9

TNT’s new series “Leverage” drew 5 million viewers in its special Sunday debut, according to Cable Fast Nationals. After "The Closer," "Saving Grace" and "Raising the Bar," "Leverage" gives the cable network another successful launch of an original series.

The breezy action-drama premieres in its regular time slot at 9 p.m. Tuesday, with the team of con artists led by Timothy Hutton scamming a defense contractor on behalf of a soldier its workers injured. (The videos posted here show action from Tuesday’s episode; read my review. )

Hutton plays Nathan Ford, a former insurance investigator disillusioned by his business after his own company refuses to pay for an experimental treatment that could save his son’s life.

The child dies, and Ford is hell-bent on revenge. As viewers watched in the Chicago-shot series premiere on Sunday (and can see again at 8 p.m. Tuesday), Ford puts together a team of thieves, hackers and grifters who steal from those who use power and wealth to victimize others.

Hutton told me during an interview last week at the Four Seasons that the story, although fictional, resonates during our current tough economic times.

“People are really struggling,” he said. “It used to be if you were paying insurance companies in a timely fashion and something happened ..., they were there for you. I’m sure that’s the case with some companies [now], but for a lot of them it’s not.

“You’re subjected to being interviewed, investigated—because the insurance company wants to find out one thing that’s wrong with the claim so they can deny it.”

Hutton and co-star Gina Bellman agreed that they were intrigued by the show's premise.

“I read the script and really thought it was great fun,” Hutton said. “I thought [Nathan Ford] was an interesting character to play. I was really interested in the starting point of the character, the guy being—in his view, nothing left to live for—drinking excessively, living out of a car, his son's gone and marriage destroyed. It's great for a character to be completely tapped out.”

But don’t think “Leverage” is all drama. There are plenty of humorous situations, great stunts and snappy dialog.

“We get to be a little tongue and cheek, and we get to be a little kitsch,” said Bellman, a British actress best known for her work on the original “Coupling.” “The show doesn’t take itself too seriously.”

Posted at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7

Noah Wyle and Stana Katic find the Judas Chalice. TNT photos

TNT may be billing “The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice,” as the last TV movie in the franchise, but star Noah Wyle has his sights set higher.

The former “ER” star is thinking maybe the big screen.

“I hope so,” he told me recently during a phone interview. “I really hope so. The ceiling on how far we can take this character is pretty high. The storytelling is just immensely rich.”

The character is the Librarian, aka Flynn Carsen, the reluctantly adventurous collector of ancient relics and artifacts for a secret division of the New York Metropolitan Library that’s overseen by characters played by Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart. (Read my review here.)

In “Judas Chalice,” which premieres at 7 p.m. Sunday on TNT, Wyle’s Carsen is trying to get the chalice before a Russian thug uses it to unleash an army of vampires on humanity.

TNT is billing it as the last—which Wyle thinks is a bit inaccurate.

“It may be more of a marketing decision than creative,” he said, “just to generate viewership.”

Finding viewers shouldn’t be a problem. The first two films, 2004’s “The Librarian: Quest for the Spear” and 2006’s “The Librarian: Return to King Solomon’s Mines,” both set records for TNT viewership when they aired. TNT and Dean Devlin’s Electric Entertainment shot those movies in locations around the world.

Wyle, an executive producer on all the films, said the production had a tighter budget this time around, so they had to come up with a good story that could be told closer to home.

“We had to find a place where American mythology would be the richest,” Wyle said.

Posted at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Dec. 5

"Leverage" stars feel Windy City love

LEVERAGE
9 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday, TNT

The scoop: Former superstar insurance investigator Nate Ford (Timothy Hutton) had recovered millions for his former employer. Then his son got sick, and his own company wouldn’t pay the medical bills. Now his son is dead, his marriage is over and Ford’s a drunk.

He’s boozing at a bar when aeronautics company exec Victor Dubenich (Saul Rubinek) offers him a job: Steal back an airplane design that was stolen by a rival company, a company that is insured by Ford’s former employer.

With vengeance on his mind, Ford accepts the job and puts together a team of scam artists and thieves who all have their own talents. Eliot (Christian Kane), the muscle, is a weapons and fighting expert; awful actress Sophie Devereaux (Gina Bellman) is a great grifter; Alec (Aldis Hodge) knows his way around computers; and daredevil Parker (Beth Riesgraf) is an exemplary thief.

After their first adventure (Sunday’s Chicago-shot pilot, called “The Nigerian Job”; scenes above) the team decides to take on one more job, and then another, for 13 episodes. They’ll steal from evil types who have cheated others and help those who can’t defend themselves.

What works: “Leverage” takes its cues from the “Ocean's” films and especially the British series “Hustle,” yet I didn’t have that “been there, done that” feeling when I watched. Although very tongue-in-cheek, “Leverage” has an underlying seriousness—I’m as sucker for noble causes—that makes if different than what we’ve seen before.

I like Hutton as the bitter, broken Ford who finds a cause that gets him back on his feet. His co-stars provide a lot of witty repartee and comedic moments. They form a happy, dysfunctional family that’s a joy to watch.

The stings—I’ve seen the first four episodes—vary in complexity and cleverness, but always zip along and entertain. The team grifts in Chicago, L.A. and other locations, taking on everyone from corporate baddies to a security force contractor in Iraq to race horse owners.

What doesn’t: OK, I admit it, there are plot holes aplenty. I ignored them.

Tune in or out: out of 4. “Leverage” has action, intrigue, whimsy and wit. And I’ll never complain when the good guys win.

Posted at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16

Philip Winchester (left) and Tongayi Chirisa are two of TV's HOTTEST NEW STARS. Don't miss my latest photo gallery to see more.

CRUSOE
7 p.m. Friday, NBC

The scoop: Robinson Crusoe (Philip Winchester) and his friend-not-servant Friday (Tongayi Chirisa) fight pirates, mutineers and natives on the island where Crusoe has been marooned in this adaptation of the Daniel Defoe classic.

What works: Laugh if you want, but I enjoyed most of the two-hour premiere—and not just because of the peep show provided by Winchester and Chirisa. (But hey, that helped.) “Crusoe” is a foolish romp of a show that doesn’t seem to take itself too seriously. It offers beautiful scenery (shot in South Africa), MacGuyver-like gadgetry (maybe a tad advanced for the 18th Century) and the action-adventure silliness—if not the campiness—of “Xena: Warrior Princess” and “Hercules.”

What doesn’t: The show’s creators must have decided that Crusoe needs a reason for living besides just, you know, staying alive. Enter the hokey, fuzz-filtered flashbacks that show Crusoe’s formerly happy life in England with his wife, Susannah (Anna Walton). Yawn.

Tune in or out? out of 4. Yes, the dialogue is often wooden and the show shamelessly steals from “Survivor,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” and even “Prison Break,” but what’s not to love about a guy and his bestie living in a treehouse and defending their deserted island from the occasional marauder? Go, Robinson, go!

Posted at 9:45 a.m. Monday, Oct. 13

TV's HOT NEW SPIES

SHOW PATROL REVIEW: Who needs logic when you've got Christian Slater?

Who is Christian Slater playing now—Henry or Edward? NBC PHOTO

In the new series “My Own Worst Enemy,” super spy Edward Albright gleefully kills foreign operatives while super dad Henry Spivey kisses his wife before heading to the office.

Both personalities, it turns out, inhabit the same body—that of actor Christian Slater.

Slater takes on his first starring TV role—make that roles—at 9 p.m. Monday on NBC, and he’s thrilled to be playing an angel and a devil.

“I thought taking the Jekyll and Hyde type of premise … and blowing it out in such an extreme way was something that was very identifiable,” said Slater, who has seen his own devilish moments made public over the years.

Besides his tabloid-ready exploits, Slater is mostly known for starring in such cult films as “Heathers,” “True Romance” and his self-proclaimed favorite, “Pump Up the Volume.” He wasn’t looking for a TV series, he said, but when the producers contacted him about “My Own Worst Enemy,” he couldn’t resist.

“It was just one of those opportunities I think I would’ve been crazy not to agree to [do],” Slater told a group of reporters during a recent conference call. “[The producers] told me that each week they were going to try and put a movie on TV and … the things we’ve been able to do have been extraordinary.”

Slater, who once guest-starred as an intelligence operative on another TV spy show, “Alias,” said he’s always been a fan of the spy genre.

“I love Sean Connery. I grew up watching all of his films as [James] Bond,” he said. “I love Daniel Craig and think he’s a great Bond.”

The other plus doing series TV, especially playing two characters, Slater said, is that there’s very little down time on set like there is in filmmaking.

“I can honestly say I haven’t spent a lot of time hanging out, sitting still,” he said. “It’s been like jumping on board of a very fast-moving train and just hanging on and keeping up, and enjoying the ride.”

Don’t miss the rest of the Christian Slater interview here and below.

Posted at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12

TV's HOT NEW SPIES

CHRISTIAN SLATER INTERVIEW: Click here and here.

MY OWN WORST ENEMY
9 p.m. Monday, NBC

The scoop: Edward Albright (Christian Slater) and Henry Spivey (Christian Slater) share the same body—and two very different worlds. Edward is a ruthless spy and Henry is a suburban family man. The two personalities, programmed to remain ignorant of each other, start to wake up in each other’s realities and all hell breaks loose.

What works: I never doubted that Slater would deliver as Edward, the magnetically intense spy. He’s also remarkably effective as wimpy Henry, who gets drunk when he learns that Edward is the original personality and Henry is the by-product of an experiment. As Henry, Slater hilariously sings to himself: “Roses are red. Violets are blue. I’m a split personality—and so am I.”

What doesn’t: OK, the Edward/Henry split personality thing is preposterous. There's little logic to most of the first episode. But the show trots outs practically every spy game cliché done from James Bond to "Alias."

Tune in or out? out of 4. Hell yes, it’s far-fetched. But who cares? Slater’s the draw here, and watching his two personalities battle for control while trying to keep each other alive is fascinating—and believable.

Posted at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11

Secret agents are hot this TV season—as evidenced by yet another secret agent man on “My Own Worst Enemy,” debuting at 9 p.m. Monday on NBC.. Here’s a look at five current small-screen spies and the undercover agents of past TV shows who seem to have inspired them.

EDWARD ALBRIGHT

“My Own Worst Enemy,” NBC

Actor: Christian Slater

Dossier: Edward (above) speaks 13 languages, is trained to kill, works for a clandestine organization and has a split personality that gives him a cover.

Spy forebear: When Sydney Bristow’s personal and work lives intertwined on “Alias,” people died—and actress Jennifer Garner (right) pouted.

CHUCK BARTOWSKI

“Chuck,” NBC

Actor: Zachary Levi

Dossier: Bumbling nerd Chuck (right) isn’t trained as a spy, but this season he’s getting serious about becoming one with the help of top-of-her-game agent Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski, right).

Spy forebear: Maxwell Smart (Don Adams, above left) of “Get Smart” was an actual secret agent, but you’d never know it by the way he stumbled through his cases. Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon, above left) bailed out Max all the time.

JACK BAUER

“24,” Fox

Actor: Kiefer Sutherland

Dossier: Jack Bauer (above) never met an enemy he didn’t want to torture—or a phone he didn’t like to scream into. Does "I need it NOW, Chloe!" sound familiar?

Spy forebear: No TV spy has used torture like Jack, but Vinnie Terranova (Ken Wahl, right) of “Wiseguy” tried to quit the Organized Crime Bureau as much as Jack has tried to leave Counter Terrorist Unit—always being sucked back in by another chance to kick ass.

MICHAEL WESTON

“Burn Notice,” USA

Actor: Jeffrey Donovan

Dossier: Spurned by his former government employers, Westen (above right) uses watches, cell phones and household products to create low-tech spy gadgets for use in his new spy-for-hire life.

Spy forebear: Angus MacGyver of “MacGyver” (above left) was well-known for his homemade gadgetry; he carried only a Swiss Army knife and duct tape.

MIKE TRACEUR

“Knight Rider,” NBC

Actor: Justin Bruening

Dossier: Ex-Army Ranger Mike Traceur drives a tricked-out KITT car (above) that's far more interesting than their adventures: It can change into a truck Transformers-style!

Spy forebear: Mike is the son of Michael Knight (David Hasselhoff, left), who drove an earlier model of the talking car/spy vehicle called KITT.

Photos courtesy NBC, USA, Fox, ABC and CBS

Posted at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 6

You can play the "Terminator" game Ambush on your iPhone or at the Fox Web site, where you can download the iPhone Ambush wallpaper shown above.

If you’re a fan of “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” and a video game player—and especially if you use an iPhone—you have to check this out.

Fox and 65 Media have created a free massive multi-player online game based on the show called Ambush. Fox says it’s the first MMO playable on iPhones and iPod Touch devices; it’s available for download at the Apple App Store.

Here’s Fox’s description of the game:

“Ambush pits human against machine. Players choose to engage as a human or a Terminator in the fight to protect or eliminate Skynet, the computer system programmed to destroy the world. The player’s goal is to predict the movement of his enemies throughout the virtual city and then set traps to terminate them, all while remaining undetected by other players. iPhone players survive within the virtual city by using their GPS function to avoid traps set by their online opponents.”

“TSCC” airs at 7 p.m. Mondays on Fox.

Posted at 3:26 p.m. Friday, Oct. 3

SHOW PATROL REVIEW: Who needs logic when you've got Christian Slater?

TV's HOT NEW SPIES

Christian Slater loves playing a spy.

"Is it fun for me?" Slater said during a conference call on Friday, laughing. "Running through dark corridors. Having a gun battle. It does go back to being a kid playing in my back yard, I’ll be honest with you. I enjoyed doing it then, and I certainly enjoy doing it now."

Slater was stumping for his new NBC series, "My Own Worst Enemy," which debuts Oct. 13. Slater plays Edward, a James Bond-like spy with a second personality, Henry, who is a peaceful suburban dad. When the show begins, neither personality knows about the other.

Slater told me that at first he wanted to be Edward, "because he’s this cool guy, this tough guy." But now, he said, he has reconsidered ever being that extreme.

"If I could hang out with one in particular," he said, "I’d feel a lot safer with Henry."

Slater said he didn't think his bad boy image from the past helped him get the role, and he got kind of Zen master when asked if he's ever felt that he had Jekyll/Hyde personalities struggling for control over his actions.

"I think, as you grow in life," he said, then changed course. "The easiest way to sum this up is to say the fastest way to know who you are is to first know who you're not."

MORE CHRISTIAN SLATER

Posted at 8:45 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 2

Joshua Jackson, John Noble and Anna Torv star in "Fringe."

Sci fi fans have done it. The new Fox series from J.J. Abrahms, “Fringe,” has earned a full-season order, the network announced today.

“We're having a blast working on this show with this great team of producers and amazing cast,” Fox president Kevin Reilly said in a statement. “The series has really taken off creatively, and it's exciting to see that the audience is responding. We believe this is the first full season of many years to come.”

According to Nielsen ratings, “Fringe” has been winning its 8 p.m. Tuesday time period among adults 18-49. It’s landed in the top 10 of overall viewers a few times as well, consistently earning 9 to 10 million viewers per episode.

The series is off the air for two weeks now because of the baseball playoffs, but it returns Oct. 14 with a new episode in which a man’s developing abilities may have caused an elevator accident and Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) has a run-in with the supposedly dead Agent John Scott (Mark Valley).

Until then, you can rewatch episodes at the Fox and Hulu Web sites.

Read my review of "Fringe" here. And here are interviews with J.J. Abrahms and series star Joshua Jackson.

Posted at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 29

CHUCK

7 p.m. Monday NBC

The scoop: Computer geek, super slacker and all-around good guy Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi) reluctantly works with CIA and NSA to stop evil around the world because he carries the U.S. government’s most important secrets—a computer program called The Intersect—in his brain. NSA agent John Casey (Adam Baldwin) and CIA agent Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski) are tasked to protect Chuck.

Monday’s season premiere picks up with last season’s cliff-hanger: bad spy Colt (guest star Michael Clark Duncan) is dangling Chuck upside down from a building. He wants the Cipher, another computer program that has all the intel from Chuck’s brain and more.

The first three episodes center on the Cipher: If Chuck can save it, he will be free from the spy world and can move on with his life. To tell more would be to spoil things—and I so want you to enjoy these eps as I did.

What works: The cast is great—from Levi’s ability to play Chuck with self-deprecating humor as well as growing self-confidence to Baldwin’s deadpan delivery to Strahovski’s badass beauty to the funny supporting cast (Josh Gomez, Sarah Lancaster and Ryan McPartlin) that keeps us tuned in to Chuck’s real life.

The show also uses guest stars Duncan well. Next week John Larroquette plays a washed-up drunk of a spy and Melinda Clarke appears as a Russian “black widow.” Matthew Bomer returns as CIA agent Bryce Larkin, the man who downloaded The Intersect into Chuck’s brain and is the rival for Sarah’s affections.

What doesn’t: It all works for me—even the should-we or shouldn’t we romance between Chuck and Sarah.

Tune in or out? Comedy, action, pop-culture satire, mystery and romance—“Chuck” does a bit of everything and does it well. This season the writers ratchet up the action as well as the subtle but hilarious references to the spy genre—including very James Bond sounding theme music within the episodes. This was one of my top shows last season, and Season 2 “Chuck” is no different.

Posted at 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 12

Don’t panic just yet, Joss Whedon fans. “Dollhouse” isn’t going anywhere.

This week Zap2it.com reported that the Fox series starring Eliza Dushku, scheduled to being in January, was shutting down production. It’s only temporary, a Fox spokesman told TV Guide, adding that the show will resume shooting on Sept. 25.

“Joss had been directing, so he wanted a couple of weeks to write, catch up on some scripts,” Fox mouthpiece Chris Alexander told TVGuide.com.

The Fox series “24” also stopped its clock this week, taking a two-week break so that writers can come up with the next moves on the Kiefer Sutherland drama.

The Hollywood Reporter said that production stopped on Monday and will resume Oct. 9. The paper said the downtime was made by showrunner Howard Gordon in order to rewrite scripts and decide what will happen in the season’s final six episodes. That is the latest delay for “24,” which didn’t air this year because of the 100-day writers’ strike.

The two-hour “24” film “24: Redemption,” will air in November and the season will begin in January. Fox will show a preview of the film during its encore presentation of “Fringe” at 7 p.m. Sunday.

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13

Fans expecting to see “Kill Bill”-quality storytelling when David Carradine and Daryl Hannah reunite for “Kung Fu Killer” this weekend should, well, prepare for disappointment.

But as Carradine’s martial arts master White Crane says in the made-for-TV movie beginning at 9 p.m. Sunday on Spike TV, “Only your own will, your intentions, are important.”

The producers’ intentions in making “Killer,” obviously, were to court Spike TV’s testosterone-heavy audience: The body count rises faster in the first five minutes than in the entire last season of “24.”

Busted arms, chopped off heads, spilled guts: Call the movie “House of Flying Limbs.”

Eastern wisdom also is abundant, with Carradine once again taking on the same type of role that made him famous decades ago on TV’s “Kung Fu.” White Crane seems to have an answer for everything, whether it’s delivered in a fortune cookie-style saying or with his fists of fury. Thankfully the fists win out more often; everything else is kind of boring.

The two-part miniseries, which continues at 9 p.m. Monday, is set in China in the late 1920s. White Crane, the orphaned son of Western missionaries, is raised as a Wudang monk who strives for peace but is forced to seek vengeance when his own master is killed in a brutal attack.

He infiltrates Shanghai’s underworld, meets lounge singer Jane Marshall (Hannah, right), who just happens to catch the eye of Khan (Kay Tong Lim), the gang leader/warlord White Crane is hunting.

Hannah does OK with her singing debut, but she’s well past the point of playing the struggling ingenue—which is what I think her character should be. Plus she’s given very little else to do besides sing; her dialogue is a mish-mash of period Brooklyn-speak (“Hey, Buster, hands off!”) and damsel-in-distress pleas.

Monday’s second part tells a whole new story involving the kidnapping of Jane and other women by White Crane’s boyhood nemesis Bai Yang (LimYu-Beng), with White Crane and his crew setting out on a quest of more spectacular killing to save the women.

My advice: Record both nights and fast forward to the fighting sequences.

Posted at 10:23 a.m. Friday, Aug. 8, from holiday in Nebraska

Can there be a “Robin Hood” without Robin Hood?

BBC America dropped a bombshell Thursday about Season 3 of the series, which will air on the network in 2009. Jonas Armstrong (above), who plays Robin Hood, will leave the show at season’s end.

“Playing Robin Hood has been one of the most incredible experiences of my life,” Armstrong said in a press release, thanking fans, cast and crew for the “amazing memories.” “The time has come to take on new challenges and look at new opportunities.”

Will Armstrong be replaced? Will the producers try to continue the series without its title character? Will the show simply end? Or will Sir Guy of Gisborne (Richard Armitage, right) realize what an ass he’s been and take up Robin’s cause to battle the Sheriff of Nottingham? After all, in Sherwood Forest, anyone can say “We are Robin Hood.”

BBC America didn’t elaborate on the fate of the show or its hero.

In the press release, executive producer Foz Allan was quoted as saying, “We cannot confirm the series climax, nor can we guarantee who will survive and who won't. You will have to watch it to see! But we can assure you Robin's exit will be unmissable!”

The press release cryptically adds: “How the legacy unfolds after Jonas [Armstrong] leaves is in itself mysterious and intriguing—guaranteed to make fans desperate to find out what happens next.”

Yes, we’re desperate. What gives? I’m waiting for a response from a BBC America rep. In other words, stay tuned.

Until then, here’s how BBC America describes Season 3, which is currently filming in Budapest, Hungary:

“Season 3 returns with an older and tougher Robin, hell bent on revenge following the tragic murder of Marian by Gisborne and the Sheriff's failure to kill King Richard. The Sheriff is more precarious and unpredictable than ever with new threats looming over him and there's the much anticipated arrival of Friar Tuck (David Harewood, ‘Blood Diamond’) who joins the gang and becomes one of Robin's closest allies.

“However, the tension on-screen will kick-off at the outset as Jonas Armstrong, who plays Robin Hood and updated the popular legend for a whole new generation, is set to bow out of the show in an explosive, nail biting Season 3 finale.”

Posted at 11 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 5, from Nebraska

Time travel, space anomalies, predatory creatures—sounds like another episode of "Doctor Who" or "Torchwood," doesn’t it? But "Primeval," BBC America’s latest great escape, offers something those entertaining shows doesn’t: a touch of reality.

"Primeval," debuting at 8 p.m. Saturday, follows the adventures of evolutionary zoologist Nick Cutter (Douglas Henshall) and his team of young, sexy assistants as they investigate the strange time portals that are allowing dinosaurs to jump into modern-day London.

Well, so much for reality. You’ll see the team track down and be chased by predatory Gorgonopsids, alligator-like Mosasaurs and flying Pteranodons. They also encounter more friendly Scutosauruses, Dodos and Rex, a cute flying lizard (left with Abby). The amazing computer effects make the well-researched, mostly accurate prehistoric creatures appear completely real.

As long as you can accept the improbability of the time portals, you’ll be transfixed by the show’s well-written dramatic plots. Why has Cutter’s scientist wife suddenly reappeared with the dinos after going missing eight years ago? What nefarious plans does the government have for the team? Will dopey student paleontologist Connor Temple (Andrew Lee Potts) get a date with zoologist Abby Maitland (Hannah Spearritt), or will she fall for research assistant Stephen Hart (James Murray)?

"Primeval" is much more than "Jurassic Park: The Series," but it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Temple and his friends outside the team bring a lot of the show’s cheeky humor.

"That’s the saddest thing I’ve seen since ‘Matrix: Revolutions,'" says one disbelieving college chum when Temple tells him about the dinos.

That's one of many funny lines that circle Temple and lighten up the drama. After all, how serious can a show with dinosaurs, giant bugs and dumb Dodos be?

Team "Primeval" (left to right): Abby (Hannah Spearritt), Connor (Andrew Lee Potts), Cutter (Douglas Henshall), Claudia (Lucy Brown), Stephen (James Murray) and Captain Tom (Mark Wakeling).

Posted at 4 p.m. Thursday, July 31, 2008

In the season finale of "Robin Hood," the outlaws head to the Holy Lands (above) to stop the Sheriff of Nottingham and Sir Guy of Gisborne (at right) from killing King John.

Actor Richard Armitage wasn’t joking when he said his “Robin Hood” character, Sir Guy of Gisborne, crosses a line into complete evil.

“He goes to the brink and does something so appalling that he’ll never be able to come back,” the actor told me at the beginning of the show’s second season. The finale airs at 8 p.m. Saturday on BBC America.

Although I like the possibilities that Guy’s actions in the finale create for Season 3, I’m not completely happy with the way Season 2 is closing.

Robin Hood and the crew have followed Sir Guy and the Sheriff of Nottingham (Keith Allen) to the Holy Lands to prevent them from killing King Richard.

I love the episode's darkness—be prepared to say goodbye to three main characters—but the series, which generally does a terrific job of balancing drama with lighter moments, gets downright corny in the season finale.

Just as he did in last week’s episode, Much (Sam Troughton, 2nd from left at left) professes his undying devotion to Robin (Jonas Armstrong) in a way that, in my mind, leaves little doubt what Much really wants to do with Robin. Come out of the closet, little buddy!

My big problem with the Much-Robin dynamic is not the possibility that Much might be holding a torch for his one-time boss. It’s that the dialogue is written in such a sentimental way I wanted Much to throw himself on his sword.

“You take me for granted,” he whined to Robin in last week’s episode—and for the millionth time. “Just because I love you doesn’t mean I can’t hate you too”

Please. In fact, the season’s final two episodes deliver some of the worst dialogue of the entire series. “We are Robin Hood,” says practically anyone onscreen (over and again), followed by a chorus: “We are Robin Hood!”

And that is not the only overly repetitive exchanges: How many times will Robin and Maid Marian (Lucy Griffiths, right) exchange wedding vows?

Enough already; the dialogue amongst Robin Hood’s crew has become silly, sentimental and downright tiresome. I'd rather see swordplay, please, and Robin using his bow.

Armitage’s Sir Guy fares better, as usual, in scenes with the Sheriff and with Marian. Armitage brings gravity to the role, showing the constant battle within Guy between good and evil.

Maybe next season, which is currently filming in Hungary, the truly bad Guy will lead the writers to better dialogue for everyone.

Posted at 1:40 p.m. Sunday, July 27 Cali time

The Comic-Con virgin strikes again. Here Zachary Levi and Joshua Gomez of 'Chuck' chat with Tim Kring and Greg Grunberg of 'Heroes.' Watch for my post from the 'Heroes' panel.

More from Comic-Con 2008.

Posted at 2:35 a.m. Thursday, July 9

AMC’s thoroughly researched and entertaining “Mad Men” may have won last summer’s biggest praises, but I fell in love with USA’s “Burn Notice.”

Let me put it in dating terms: “Mad Men” was the respectful and respectable date who showed me a nice time; “Burn Notice” was the sexy and wild date who got my pulse racing with a lot of laughs and non-stop adventure.

I’m ready for a second season out, and luckily I have a date with “Burn Notice” at 9 p.m. Thursday.

When last we saw blacklisted spy-turned-do-gooder Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan), he was stuck in the back of a semi-trailer after trying to learn the identity of the people who issued the “burn notice” to end his CIA career.

Season 2 begins 48 hours later—and Michael still waits in the truck.

“When you’ve cleaned your gun 30 times and reviewed the past tense of every verb in five languages, you start itching to make a move,” he says in the show’s trademark voice-overs.

I won’t spoil what happens next, except to say that Michael is forced to do the bidding of a mysterious voice on the phone that ends up belonging to Carla (Tricia Helfer), who works for or is the entity that had Michael burned.

If the first two episodes are any indication, the new season of creator Matt Nix’s first series keeps all the good things that made it work last year—wit, action, sexiness and fun, fun, fun.

With his sly charm and winning smile, Donovan is superb as Michael. And what I first thought was an annoying writing crutch—Michael’s snarky but informative voice-overs—I now love.

Donovan gets help from a wonderful group of supporting players who hit all the right notes for their parts. Bruce Campbell plays ex-spy and Miami loafer Sam, who was hired by the government to spy on Michael but now works with him. Gabrielle Anwar brings the sexy—and good emotional conflict—as Michael’s former gal pal Fiona, an ex-IRA operative who still has feeling for him.

And this season, it seems, Sharon Gless is getting more screen time as Michael’s annoyingly needy mom, Madeline. Gless and Donovan have some wonderful scenes together that start out tender and touching, but end with real zingers.

Those scenes mirror the tone of the show: It is a drama and an action-adventure, but like any great date does, it finds the right time to make you laugh.

Posted at midnight Thursday, July 9

Read my review of "Burn Notice."

Sharon Gless has put her stamp on many roles throughout her career—from Chris Cagney on “Cagney & Lacey” to Debbie Novotny on “Queer As Folk” to a short-but-memorable stint on “Nip/Tuck” as Colleen Rose.

She’s at it again in USA Network’s “Burn Notice,” playing Madeline Westen, the chain-smoking, hypochondriac mother to the series’ main character, burned spy Michael Westen, who is now stuck in Miami—too close to his mother. The series begins its second season at 9 p.m. Thursday on USA.

I recently chatted with Gless, who was taking a break during filming in Miami.

“I’m outside on a mosquito-infested porch and I’m in a mosquito suit,” she told me. “I’m glad there are no photographers.”

We talked about Madeline Westen and her other famous roles, how Gless feels about being a gay icon and the trouble with smoking.

CW: “Burn Notice” gained a following very quickly. Why do you think that is?

SG: Isn’t that amazing? Do you know what the demographics for this show are? [Ages] 10 to 80.

I was joking that it has something to offend everyone. I was just amazed. Take your hat off to [series creator] Matt Nix. He’s the genius who thought this up. His first time out and he hits pay dirt. And he’s a very nice guy too.

CW: Tell me about Madeline Westen.

SG: I’m really beginning to like Madeline more and more—I think just because I’m understanding her more and more. She’s obviously a pain in the side for her son. But I like her. I think she’s the most emotionally honest person on the show. Certainly whatever she’s feeling you get to hear about. She’s kind of the emotional glue.

She’s funny. She’s complicated—very manipulative. That’s fun. Obviously she has problems. She’s addicted to cigarettes, [she’s a] hypochondriac, but you still like her—at least I do—and I think the audience does.

She loves her son, despite how she behaves. She loves her son and she wants his attention. And wants his safety.

Posted at midnight Tuesday, July 8

Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) finally meets his new "boss" Carla (Tricia Helfer). Read my review of USA's "Burn Notice."

If you want to know anything about the mysterious new character Carla on USA’s “Burn Notice,” don’t ask the actress playing her.

Tricia Helfer doesn’t know much.

“I’m definitely looking forward to finding out more of what Carla’s doing and who she is. Just like she’s mysterious to Michael and the audience she kind of is to me at this point,” Helfer told me recently.

“Carla is a strong and intelligent character, and it’s the first time I’m playing human,” she said during a call from the Vancouver set of “Battlestar Galactica,” where she has played the Cylon Number Six for five seasons.

Actually, Helfer knows a little more about Carla. She's very human, and not just a voice on the phone. Carla has been keeping the fired—or burned as the show's jargon goes—CIA operative Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) on his toes.

As Season 2 of the series begins at 9 p.m. Thursday, Michael is sitting in the back of a semi that Carla insisted he enter. When he’s finally able to leave, Carla calls with an “assignment” for him.

“She’s the public face of the organization that burned Michael and she’s definitely one of the heads of the organization—to what extent I don’t know,” Helfer said. “But she’s definitely at the top of her game. She’s somebody who’s very confident in her abilities.”

According to USA, Helfer appears in at least three of the nine episodes making up the first half of the season and she’ll be in some of the seven episodes when the second half airs in early 2009.

Helfer’s scenes in the early episodes are with Donovan and co-star Bruce Campbell, who plays Michael’s ex-spy confidant. Helfer said the two men—and the rest of the main cast including Gabrielle Anwar and Sharon Gless—were welcoming to her.

“It’s always hard going in to a show that’s already a well-oiled machine,” she said. “To kind of go in new can be daunting and it can be hard to feel like you fit in, but the whole crew and cast were just so welcoming of me. It was a really easy transition to go in and start working.”

Helfer and I talked more about Carla, a pilot she’s shooting for Fox and the thought of her and her good friend and “BSG” co-star, Tricia Helfer, doing an update of Sharon Gless’ TV show, “Cagney & Lacey.” For more, keep reading below.

Posted at 5:15 p.m. Thursday, June 3

Luke Perry rides high in "A Gunfighter's Pledge."

Fireworks, hot dogs and beer aside, nothing says Fourth of July weekend like an old-style Western.

So if you are over served on Friday, pop some aspirin Saturday, sit back on the couch and watch “A Gunfighter’s Pledge” at 8 p.m. on Hallmark Channel.

Luke Perry—yes, Dylan of “Beverly Hills 90210”—does a respectable job in the Clint Eastwood-style role of a former sheriff named Matt Austin who is seeking vengeance from Tate, the outlaw who killed his wife and child.

For a good piece of the yarn, Austin slowly tumbles like a, well, tumbleweed through the West as he searches far and wide for the killer. Unfortunately that’s when “Pledge” jumps jarringly to the story of a landowner of Mexican descent who is fighting to save his farm from an evil businessman played amusingly by C. Thomas Howell.

It’s not until Austin stops for whiskey in saloon that he crosses paths with the no-account outlaw who shot up his family. Once they spy each other, all hell breaks loose as they shoot up the saloon. Austin misses his target, instead shooting the innocent land owner. Austin pledges to return the dying man’s body to his sister at the family farm.

Once Austin gets the farm, he’s drawn into the dispute between the dead guy’s sister and the businessman, who now happens to employ Tate as his muscle. Finally, we’re treated to the inevitable shootout.

Yippee-kay-yay.

Posted at 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 1

The TV series “The Prisoner” ran for only 17 episodes beginning in 1968, but it gained a cult following. Those fans now can look forward to the show’s rebirth as an AMC miniseries.

The network announced that it air a “reinterpretation” of the story about Number Six, a political prisoner held captive in an idyllic village by rarely seen captors. He and the other village residents were never sure why they were being held.

Jim Caviezel (right) will play Number Six, the character played by Patrick McGoohan in the original. Ian McKellen will costar. The six-part miniseries, being developed by ITV, is expected to premiere in 2009.

Here’s a clip compilation from the original. More can be found on YouTube.

Posted at 4:30 p.m. Friday, June 27

I called Sharon Gless on Friday morning to talk about the July 10 return of the USA Network series “Burn Notice.” But this being gay Pride Weekend in Chicago, we kind of got sidetracked.

“Oh that’s great. I wish I were there,” she told me over the phone from Miami, where “Burn Notice” films. “Chicago is where ‘Queer As Folk’ was sneaked to me under a table. I was doing a play at the Victory Gardens Theater for one of your playwrights, Claudia Allen.

“I flew out of Chicago one day, went and saw the [‘Queer As Folk’] producers, came back and it was mine.

“Chicago has a very large piece of my heart.”

Gless cemented her standing in the gay community playing rainbow flag-waving mom Debbie Novotny in “Queer As Folk.” But she isn’t sure about being called a gay icon. Actually, it’s the “icon” part that troubles her.

“People have been using the words ‘icon’ and ‘legend’ around me in the past few weeks,” she told me. “I’m not old enough, am I?”

“It’s certainly flattering,” she continued. “I have a great affection for the gay community.”

Gless first rose to fame in the 1980s as Chris Cagney in the ground-breaking female cop series “Cagney & Lacey,” a role that she says had a huge lesbian following, mostly because viewers thought Cagney—and Gless—were gay.

“I mean, people still don’t believe that I’m not gay, and I don’t fight them. I just say, ‘OK, whatever,’” she said.

She says gay fans helped reverse a downward turn in her career post-“Cagney & Lacey.”

“I’ve always given credit to the gay community for keeping my career alive,” she said, adding that “Queer As Folk” changed not only her career, but also her life.

Gless said she feels honored to have played Debbie because of fan reaction and support. After episode tapings in Toronto, she said, fans would gather outside the studio and ask her for hugs. One young fan hugged her and began sobbing.

“All I could think about was the damage that must have been done to this boy. I held him for three or four minutes until he stopped crying.

“I was the lucky one who got to play that role.”

PHOTOS: Above, Sharon Gless stars in USA's "Burn Notice". At right, Gless as Chris Cagney on "Cagney & Lacey," and onstage in the Victory Gardens Theater's "Cahoots" in 2000. [ USA photo/CBS photo/Tribune file photo ]

Click below for more from Gless. And click here to read what Gless has to say about "Burn Notice."

Posted at 10 a.m. Monday, June 16

Matt Keesler and Natalie Morales star in "The Middleman"

If you could take your TV to the beach, “The Middleman” is what you’d be watching.

It’s silly, lightweight entertainment that’s perfect for summer. (And you can take it to the beach—it’s available on iTunes.)

The snarky ABC Family series, premiering at 7 p.m. Monday, is based on the graphic novels written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach, who has written for “Lost” and “Medium.”

It follows twentysomething temp worker Wendy Watson (Natalie Morales), who while working at a genetics lab is attacked by a monster. Her level-headed reaction catches the eye of a golly-gosh good guy called The Middleman (Matt Keesler).

He makes a pitch for her to partner up with him as a crime-fighter.

"You know how in comic books there's all kinds of mad scientists and aliens and androids and monsters and all of them want to either destroy or take over the world?" he says.

"In comic books, sure," Wendy replies.

"Well, it really does work like that," he says. “People want to believe reality’s normal. The ones who don’t are freaks and no one believes them, anyway.”

It’s a pitch Wendy can’t ignore, and she joins up.

“The Middleman” is a sarcastic hoot with “Gilmore Girls”-like fast-talking, pop culture references that are aimed squarely at adults and enough silliness that kids—and the young at heart—will enjoy.

To see how "The Middleman" mixes genres, go to the jump.

Posted at 11:45 p.m. Wednesday, June 11

Looks like Maid Marian has lost her patience with turncoat Allan-A-Dale, who’s deserted Robin Hood and the gang for the Sheriff of Nottingham and Guy of Gisborne.

Don’t mess with Marian, Allan. She will cut you.

Here’s a video preview of the next episode of “Robin Hood,” titled “Show Me the Money,” airing at 8 p.m. Saturday on BBC America. After the video you’ll find BBC America’s description of the episode.

Posted at 12:15 p.m. Monday, June 9

Chuck (Zachary Levi) and Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) might be moving in together.

Sounds like NBC’s accidental secret agent comedy “Chuck” is going to be twice as fun in the fall.

“It’s twice the action, twice the drama and twice the romance,” series star Zachary Levi told TV Guide on Sunday. “It’s Chuck squared.”

The show’s second season, TV Guide reports, will play with the theme of twos. “Chuck dies, twice,” Levi told the online magazine. “It’s crazy.”

Levi revealed some other developments that bode well for the always hilarious but ratings-challenged series (Translation: Watch it people!):

Posted at 6 p.m. Friday, June 6

Three very different types of made-for-TV movies debut this weekend. Here’s my takes on “Sybil,” “Backwoods” and “The Circuit.”

Jessica Lange and Tammy Blanchard take the roles famously acted by Joanne Woodward and Sally Field in CBS' remake of "Sybil."

SYBIL
7 p.m. Saturday CBS
I’d watch Jessica Lange read the phone book. Thankfully she gets to do more in this made-for-TV movie, starring as a psychiatrist who helps a client, Sybil (Tammy Blanchard), deal with her 16 separate personalities. Unfortunately this update of the superior 1976 TV movie skips too much story, which lessens the impact of the shocking atrocities that caused Sybil’s psyche to split. It also plants doubt the story is true, suggesting the two women, who died in the 1990s, made the whole thing up.

BACKWOODS
8 p.m. Sunday Spike TV
Eight colleagues go off into the woods for a company retreat but end up being hunted by members of a cult right out of “Deliverance.” I’m talking crossed eyes and twangy gee-tars here. The actors—including Haylie Duff (right), Danny Nucci and Ryan Merriman—do a good job, um, screaming and running. The second-rate script gets too misogynistic, but go figure—we’re watching Spike. Despite that, it was fun to see an arrow pierce a guy’s neck and other “Rambo”-like ambushes.

Michelle Trachtenberg, Drew Fuller and Billy Campbell race cars in "The Circuit."

THE CIRCUIT
7 p.m. Sunday ABC Family
Fresh from playing bad girl Georgina Sparks on “Gossip Girl,” Michelle Trachtenberg replaces the bitchy with brassy as a budding NASCAR driver. She’s no Speed Racer, no matter how fast she go-go-goes, because she won’t follow directions. She also doesn’t get along with her estranged father, a NASCAR legend (Billy Campbell), and is sleeping with her biggest competition (Drew Fuller). This made-for-TV flick has bedroom antics, family melodrama, you-go-girl spunk and a predictably cheesy ending. And lap after lap, it drew me in.

Posted at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 31

The promos for USA Network’s new cop series, “In Plain Sight,” use the borrowed tag line “There’s something about Mary.”

I’d argue it should be changed to “There’s something about Mary and Marshall.”

When U.S. marshals Mary Shannon and Marshall Mann are onscreen together, this invigorating series really zings. The sexy pair, who relocate and protect federal witnesses, makes an instant classic cop team.

Mary, played with charisma by Mary McCormack, kicks butt on the job but she has problems in her personal life that make her edgy and irritated. She’s the typical lead character in a been-there, seen-that genre: the hard-edged babe with a badge. (Don’t miss the TV Tough Gals photo gallery for examples.)

It seems the only person who can handle her crankiness is her partner, Marshall (yes, a marshal named Marshall). Fred Weller gives the closet intellectual Marshall a dry, sardonic sense of humor.

Despite many genre clichés and too-clever dialogue in the premiere airing at 9 p.m. Sunday, McCormack and Weller make the show eminently watchable.

But when they are not onscreen, the show focuses too heavily on unbelievable cases—would a judge really turn a child in the witness protection program over to his possibly murderous dad?

And unfortunately, the show spends too much time on Mary’s dysfunctional home life. She has leaches for a mom (Leslie Ann Warren) and sister (Nichole Hiltz) and a confusing relationship with a pretty boy played by Cristian de la Feunte.

None of this will keep me from tuning in, however. The series, like USA’s now-bright “Burn Notice” and “Psych” did, starts out slow but shows real promise.

By Episode 4—called “Trojan Horst” and guest starring a funny Dave Foley—the series seems to figure out how to balance the action, the comedy and the amazing play between Mary and Marshall.

Posted at 10 a.m. Friday, May 30

WARNING IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE SEASON 4 FINALE: CONTAINS SPOILERS!

So John Locke’s in the casket on “Lost,” but everyone is calling him Jeremy Bentham.

Whaaa?

That’s par for the course when it comes to ABC’s “Lost.” The writers answer one question, but leave viewers with other mysteries.

As for the mystery of Locke's new name, a real Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) was an English philosopher and political radical. I found this tidbit at the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy that might give a hint about why the writer's have changed Locke's name to Jeremy Bentham:

“Bentham is primarily known today for his moral philosophy, especially his principle of utilitarianism which evaluates actions based upon their consequences, in particular the overall happiness created for everyone affected by the action.”

Obviously Jack’s actions have created anything but happiness, right?

Right? I love this show for all its mysteries!

I also loved Thursday night’s season finale. Among its offerings:

Posted at 1:20 a.m. Friday, May 30

Fred Weller doesn’t have to stretch too much to play a U.S. marshal named Marshall Mann on USA Network’s new series, “In Plain Sight.”

“I could, probably, very easily kill a man,” Weller told me last week via phone from upstate New York. “But Marshall has a certain dorky element to him, which obviously I’m completely void of. So that would be where we differ.”

Weller was joking—I hope, anyway—but he does bring his own brand of humor to the hour-long drama premiering at 9 p.m. Sunday.

“In Plain Sight” centers on the complicated life of Marshall’s partner, Mary Shannon (Mary McCormack), who’s excellent at her job but can’t get her family life under control. She has to deal with a dingy mom, a lazy sister and her own grumpy attitude about life.

She also has to deal with Marshall, who, according to Weller, “carries a torch for her.”

“Sometimes I think my affections may be secretly requited, although Mary McCormack seems to think otherwise,” he said. “There’s definitely some tension I would say.”

As if that’s not enough stress for Mary, she and Marshall are charged with protecting witnesses entering the Federal Witness Protection Program in Albuquerque, N.M.

“It’s a pretty cool job,” Weller said, adding that a retired marshal serves as a technical adviser on the show. “I learned that the U.S. marshals with WITSEC are a lot more badass than I had imagined—apparently the best in the country in terms of, well, being able to protect people.”

But the new series isn’t all drama. Although it’s a little more serious than USA’s other jokey dramas such as “Burn Notice,” “Monk” and “Psych,” Weller said there’s plenty of comedy—often supplied by his character.

“He’s a trained badass, but wears pajamas with little planes on them, you know? I mean it’s pretty fun.”

It was also fun filming last fall in Albuquerque, Weller said, adding that it has a “funky” main drag.

“There’s something rather interesting about having a town with just three great bars and three great restaurants,” he said. “Limited [choices], but quality.

“I really got into it.”

Filming in the city where the action actually is set also added authenticity, he said.

There is one other reason Weller has fond memories of the city. “My daughter was born there,” he said. Weller and his wife, actress Ali Marsh, welcomed Azalia in November.

“It was beautiful and the child seems to be perfectly intelligent.”

“In Plain Sight” is Weller’s first gig as a series regular since he filmed “Missing Persons” in Chicago in the early 1990s. Go to the jump for Weller’s take on the Windy City and to hear more about his new show and character.

Posted at 2:15 p.m. Wednesday, May 28

If you thought the Season 3 finale of “Lost” was a game-changer—as its producers called it—wait until Thursday’s Season 4 send-off at 8 p.m. on ABC.

“We’ve had notes of whimsy in the past—between Locke and Ben especially,” Michael Emerson, who plays master manipulator Ben Linus, told me during a phone chat last week. “There will be no notes of whimsy in the finale. It’s deep, dark and violent.

“We’re racing against time and there will be many casualties.”

Emerson wouldn’t answer specific questions—he laughed when I asked who was in the coffin that we’ve seen Jack visit—but he did say that the most burning questions from throughout the season will be answered Thursday.

You can get some clues from what he did answer if you read between the lines. For more "Lost" click here.

When last we saw Ben, he had been knocked out by freighter fiend Keamy inside the Orchid greenhouse. Does he have a plan?
Ben is in the clutches of Keamy, possibly by chance. When he says “I always have a plan,” you can take him at his on that. He’s getting tired of people not believing him, of thinking he’s some kind of weenie who can’t get things done.

Ben is always getting beat up. Does he like pain, or is he just tricking everyone?
I’m a bit mystified by that. At first I didn’t like it. Then I thought, “What if he doesn’t see them as just beatings?” He uses them as tactical tools to give his adversaries a false sense of security. This way he can learn more about them than they learn about him. He’s a trafficker in information.

We saw in a flash forward this season that Ben recruits Sayid as an assassin during Sayid’s wife’s funeral. Did Ben kill her to trick Sayid?
Ben don’t roll like that. He’s not really a murderer. You can believe his recruitment of Sayid was in earnest.

Are the people who didn’t get off the island dead or did they choose to stay there?
I don’t think that’s it. I don’t think anyone wants to stay on the island. I think people were left behind as some kind of horrific bargain. Why else was Jack torturing his soul? Is it out of guilt? What are they covering up? What’s the lie? Is the truth too terrible, too unheroic? Have they been bought?

Since “Lost” producers and ABC agreed to an end date for the show, it seems to have picked up steam and gotten better. Do you agree?
It’s had terrific momentum. It’s more organized with real goals. We now can imagine the story will end with a great throw-down.

Posted at midnight Wednesday, May 28

After a Memorial Day weekend break, BBC America’s “Robin Hood” returns at 8 p.m. Saturday with a brand new episode in which Robin may finally catch the spy in his gang.

To catch you up, Sir Guy of Gisborne (Richard Armitage) forced Allan a Dale (Joe Armstrong) to spy on Robin Hood (Jonas Armstrong) and the gang. Allan’s been meeting with Sir Guy for some time, spilling secrets and allowing Sir Guy to be one step ahead of our hero at times.

As you can see in the clip above, Maid Marian (Lucy Griffiths) once again exploits Sir Guy's attraction to her to get what she wants. But I'm beginning to think Sir Guy is only pretending to fall for it.

Here’s what BBC America is saying about Episode 5, called “Ducking and Diving”:

A horrified Robin discovers that his plan to capture the Sheriff’s spy, Henry of Lewes, failed because of a traitor in his gang.

Fearing for Marian’s safety in the castle, Robin needs to find out who is betraying him. Marian supplies his only clue: the spy sells his secrets to Gisborne at the Trip to Jerusalem Inn.

With two missions to complete Robin is relieved when Henry of Lewes arrives at the castle unconscious, his vital information about the King’s landing sites remaining a mystery. Robin infiltrates the castle to silence Henry and is helped by a wise-woman Matilda, who is tasked by the Sheriff to nurse Henry to health.

Asking Robin to look after her pregnant daughter, Matilda promises that she’ll silence Henry using special herbs. The Sheriff makes the connection with Robin and Matilda’s life is in danger.

Robin returns to the forest with Matilda’s daughter, to a confused and hurt gang; they resent being suspected of treachery. Marian arrives at the camp on a horse, reporting that Matilda is about to be tried for witchcraft.

Can Robin trust his gang to save the lives at stake and also silence Henry? There is a spy in his gang who needs catching before the day is out.

Posted at 1:45 a.m. Monday, April 27

Here's a clip courtesy of BBC America featuring Richard Armitage as Sir Guy of Gisborne in a future episode. Read my review of "Robin Hood."

Jonas Armstrong may play the legendary thief on BBC America’s “Robin Hood,” but Richard Armitage can lay claim to an army of followers.

Armitage plays baddie Sir Guy of Gisborne in the adventure series and still inspires devoted female fans that call themselves the Armitage Army.

“What’s good about it for me is you get a bit of a feedback,” Armitage told me during a phone interview from London. “You get a genuine response—albeit they tend to like my stuff. But it’s nice to see what they’re making of it and if I’m doing my job well—because they will tell me if I’m not.”

In the Season 2 premiere of “Robin Hood,” which aired Saturday night (8 p.m. Saturdays), Guy and his boss, the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, expand their sinister plots from Season 1 by creating an army to take control of England.

Armitage said he has a great time playing a bad guy—named Guy.

“Baddies are always the most fun to play because you get to be rude and aggressive and you get to do things that you can’t really do in everyday life,” he said.

Armitage promises that this season, Guy will become even more despicable—especially after his one true love, Maid Marian (played by Lucy Griffiths, right), rejected him at the end of last season.

Although he wouldn’t go into much detail, I was able to wrestle this much out of him about what happens in Episode 13: “He does something sort of to himself but through another person. He goes to the brink and does something so appalling that he’ll never be able to come back from.”

Sounds deliciously evil, no?

Even Sir Guy’s costume, all leather from head to toe, is imposing. And despite how “hot and sweaty” he gets in the costume while filming over summers in Budapest, Hungary, Armitage wouldn’t trade it for tights.

“I would gladly stay with the leather rather than go into a pair of tights, ever,” he said, laughing. “It just really wouldn’t work.”

I had only a few minutes with Armitage, who is busy filming Season 7 of the amazing spy series “MI-5” in London, but we talked about his new character on that show, his appearance on “The Vicar of Dibley” and riding elephants in the circus.

Posted at 8 a.m. Friday, April 25

When I was a kid one of my favorite stories was the Robin Hood legend. The hero and his merry band of thieves rob from the rich to give to the poor in 12th Century England.

Swashbuckling heroes, nefarious villains and tons of sword fights: It was pure escapist fantasy.

BBC America’s very modern “Robin Hood” series kicks off its second season at 8 p.m. Saturday filled with all those components and a bonus. In this cheeky retelling of the legend, Robin shoots as many quips as he does arrows.

Done in the comic style of “Xena: Warrior Princess”—and who doesn’t love “Xena”—“Robin Hood” is a fun-filled action adventure.

As Season 2 opens, the Sheriff of Nottingham is assembling his Black Knights to come up with a plan to kill King Richard and split up England amongst themselves.

As usual, Robin and his gang are there to stop him—although they can’t just kill the sheriff. As we learned at the end of Season 1, Prince John will send an army to destroy Nottingham if something bad happens to the sheriff.

Robin’s chief task this season is to stop the coup and neutralize the sheriff without ticking off Prince John. But there’s a spy among Robin’s merry band, and he’s keeping the sheriff’s henchman, Guy of Gisborne, one step ahead of Robin.

Season 2 also raises the stakes for Robin’s love life. Maid Marian is under house arrest at Nottingham Castle where Gisborne still pines for her affections. But his anger at her for spurning him last season puts her in constant danger.

The ever-independent and modern Marian also is fighting her own covert war against the sheriff as the masked avenger called the Night Watchman.

So far the second season has improved from the first in many ways.

The weakest link last season, actually, was Jonas Armstrong in the title role. Although he is cute as can be, he didn’t have the stature or confidence to be believable as a leader of men. Armstrong seems much more comfortable with the role now, making Robin cocky and self-centered yet genuinely concerned for Marian and the people of Nottingham.

Lucy Griffiths gives Marian the spunk she needs, while Richard Armitage is convincingly brooding and ominous as Guy of Gisborne.

But the real star of the show is Keith Allen as the Sheriff of Nottingham. Allen menacing and sarcastic portrayal delights in every scene.

The first two episodes are delightful, too. Everything—the fights, the comedy, the plot twists—is bigger and broader than in the first season. I think the show has found its footing, and now knows better where it wants to go—and that’s into the witty, fun realm where “Xena” resided.