Drama Archives

OCCUPATION
7 p.m. Sunday, BBC America
Tune in or out? out of four

As stories about the conflict in Iraq go, you can't do much better than this gritty look at three British soldiers who can't escape their experiences in the war-torn country. James Nesbitt is especially good as a husband and father who risks his family when he falls for an Iraqi doctor, while Stephen Graham and Warren Brown play two opposites--practical profiteer and naive idealist--both of whom return to Iraq as mercenaries. Their gripping, tragic stories illuminate the moral quagmire of war.

Alex O'Loughlin gets stuck behind a stethoscope in "Three Rivers." I say bring back "Moonlight." CBS photo

THREE RIVERS
8 p.m. Sunday, CBS
Tune in or out? out of four.

DEFYING GRAVITY
8 p.m. Sunday, ABC
Tune in or out? out of four.

ABC tries to lure both fans of sci fi and nighttime soaps with this new summer series. I'm not sure "Defying Gravity" will fly with fans of both genres.

THE PHILANTHROPIST
9 p.m. Wednesday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Paulo Costanzo stars as Evan Lawson in USA Network's "Royal Pains."

Paulo Costanzo is rolling in wealth on his new TV series, "Royal Pains."

As Evan Lawson, the social-climbing brother of Dr. Hank Lawson (Mark Feuerstein), he gets to spend time in East Coast mansions and on beaches in the Hamptons with lots of babes. But those aren't even the best perks, he told me recently.

"My trailer is actually made of platinum and virgins," he said. "Platinum's more expensive than gold, just so you know. And diamond studs as well. Don't forget the diamond studs."

Mark-Paul Gosselaar fans have seen the former "Saved by the Bell" and "NYPD Blue" star with blond, brown, black, shaggy and spiked hair.

Brand new 'do, same bad suit. Mark-Paul Gosselaar in "Raising the Bar." TNT photos

"I didn't have too many friends to tell me, 'Jeez man, that looks like shit,'" he told me during an interview in which we chatted about, yes, yet another new 'do.

As the second season of his TNT hit, "Raising the Bar," opens at 9 p.m. Monday, Gosselaar's character, dedicated defense attorney Jerry Kellerman, finally gets that shaggy mane shorn.

And Gosselaar's glad for that, considering that he's been talking about the hair ever since he grew it out for the role. But he's not bitter.

"At least, at 35 years old, I can have a conversation about hair," he said. "I feel very fortunate."

Gosselaar also discussed Jerry's never-ending feud with Judge Trudy Kessler (Jane Kaczmarek), his budding relationship with a new judge and if fans will ever see Jerry's bare butt. (And don't forget to watch Gosselaar on Jimmy Fallon's "Saved by the Bell" edition tonight.)

WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
PBS' "Masterpiece Mystery"
8 p.m. Sunday, WTTW-Ch. 11
Tune in or out?

With "One Step Behind," PBS closes the first and first-rate season of "Wallander" mysteries starring Kenneth Branagh as the melancholy Swedish detective Kurt Wallander.

John Lithgow

Showtime announced Wednesday that John Lithgow will play Simmons in all 12 episodes of the drama's fourth season, which launches Sept. 27.

Simmons is one of those guys that people hardly notice, a mild-mannered suburbanite who moves to Miami to pursue his passion--killing people. It turns out Simmons is a prolific serial killer called the "Trinity Killer." Apparently he likes to kill in groups of three. He comes to Miami after FBI Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine) gets too close to finding him. Lundy taps Dexter (Michael C. Hall) to help track Simmons.

Fans of the show can guess what happens next. Dex, no slouch in the killing department himself, kind of falls for Trinity's methods. Lithgow should be a great addition to the season.

Posted at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 24

U.S. Senator Joan Cameron (Judy Davis, left) searches for answers in her daughter's death. ABC photos

DIAMONDS
8 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday, ABC
Tune in or out? out of four.

This ambitious two-part film about the seedy blood diamond trade loosely weaves together five stories, which is at least two stories too many.

U.S. Senator Joan Cameron (Judy Davis, left) searches for answers in her daughter's death. ABC photos

DIAMONDS
8 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday, ABC
Tune in or out? out of four.

This ambitious two-part film about the seedy blood diamond trade loosely weaves together five stories, which is at least two stories too many.

Posted at 3:30 p.m. Friday, May 1

Lisa Edelstein knows how to tease fans of "House" and actor Hugh Laurie.

“He’s super sexy, so who could complain about kissing him?” Edelstein told reporters during a Friday conference call to discuss Monday's episode, in which House and Edelstein's Dr. Cuddy—the pair known as Huddy—finally hook up.

“You’re not going to see me get naked or anything,” Edelstein teased, “but it was a pretty hot scene.”

Edelstein wouldn’t give too many details about Monday’s 7 p.m. episode, called “Under My Skin,” or the May 11 season finale, except to say there will be repercussions from the Huddy hook-up, he’s not going to stop seeing Amber any time soon, and it was a blast working with guest star Carl Reiner. Read more after the video below.

Posted at 8:30 a.m. Friday, May 1

Ed Westwick is going from bad boy to vampire geek this summer.

Westwick, who plays “Gossip Girl” troublemaker Chuck Bass, will guest star on the second episode of Showtime’s “Californication” as Balt, a student fascinated with vampire literature who enroll sin a class taught by star David Duchovny’s Hank.

Westwick is one of several guest stars appearing on the show’s third season. Showtime today said that Rick Springfield, Embeth Davidtz and Eva Amurri will join previously announced guest stars Kathleen Turner, Diane Farr and Peter Gallagher.

Amurri, Susan Sarandon’s daughter, also will play a student in Hank’s class. Hank decides to give up the womanizing and hold down a regular job by becoming a university writing professor.

I doubt Hank will be able to stay away from the ladies. Davidtz guest stars as Felicia Koons, the wife of the dean of students (Gallagher). Showtime hasn’t said who Springfield will play, but he’ll guest in at least one episode.

A rep at Showtime tells me Season 3 will debut this fall.

Posted at 9:45 a.m. Tuesday, April 27

CBS is giving "Harper's Island" the same treatment Uncle Marty (Harry Hamlin, above) got on the show. CBS photo

CBS has found a way to end “Harper’s Island” fast than any serial killer could: It’s moving the show to Saturday’s beginning this week.

Saturday is the night where shows go to die—at least in live viewership.

CBS says the move comes after it learned that many folks are watching via DVR and online, as opposed to live during the 9 p.m. Thursday time slot.

The show’s April 9 premiere was watched on TV by 9.65 million viewers, but increased by 1.64 million viewers to 11.29 million after factoring in the 7-Day DVR numbers. The show’s debut was CBS’ best online premiere ever in terms of viewers, the network reports.

“Harper’s Island” will air at 8 p.m. Saturday and be followed by “48 Hours Mystery.” CBS will show a repeat of “Criminal Minds” at 9 p.m. this Thursday. A “CSI: NY” repeat will air in the time slot on May 7.

On May 14, the season finale of “CSI: NY” will be broadcast at 9 p.m. Below is look at other schedule changes:

Posted at 12:25 a.m. Monday, July 27

Matthew Bomer (right) and Tim DeKay co-star in a new USA Network series tentatively called "White Collar." USA photo

Don’t panic, “Chuck” fans. Just because Matthew Bomer’s pilot for USA Network, “White Collar,” has been greenlit for a series doesn’t mean all hope is lost for “Chuck’s” renewal.

Bomer wasn’t a series regular on “Chuck,” where he occasionally played spy Bryce Larkin, Chuck’s former bud and Sarah’s former boyfriend. (He’s back for Monday's season finale, by the way.)

Posted at 8 p.m. Sunday, April 19

WELLER, MCCORMACK TALK ROMANCE, "IN PLAIN SIGHT"

IN PLAIN SIGHT
9 p.m. Sunday, USA
Tune in or out? out of four.

Each week U.S. marshals Mary Shannon and Marshall Mann solve mysteries surrounding witnesses they’ve helped place in the federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC), yet USA Network’s “In Plain Sight” is anything but a cop drama.

Posted at 7 p.m. Sunday, April 19

REVIEW: "IN PLAIN SIGHT" IS A TREAT

Fred Weller and Mary McCormack of "In Plain Sight." USA Network photos

“In Plain Sight” co-stars Mary McCormack and Fred Weller seem to get along great, but that doesn’t mean they’re on the same page about their characters’ feelings for each other.

“Mary led me to believe at some point last year that her character looked at Marshall as a brother. I don’t think that’s entirely true,” Weller, who plays U.S. marshal Marshall Mann on the engaging USA Network drama, told me during a recent conference call.

Fred Weller and Mary McCormack of "In Plain Sight." USA Network photos

"In Plain Sight" co-stars Mary McCormack and Fred Weller seem to get along great, but that doesn't mean they're on the same page about their characters' feelings for each other.

"Mary led me to believe at some point last year that her character looked at Marshall as a brother. I don't think that's entirely true," Weller, who plays U.S. marshal Marshall Mann on the engaging USA Network drama, told me during a recent conference call.

IN PLAIN SIGHT
9 p.m. Sunday, USA
Tune in or out? out of four.

Each week U.S. marshals Mary Shannon and Marshall Mann solve mysteries surrounding witnesses they've helped place in the federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC), yet USA Network's "In Plain Sight" is anything but a cop drama.

Posted at 4:10 p.m. Friday, April 17

GREY GARDENS
7 p.m. Saturday, HBO
Tune in our out? out of four.

Who knew Drew Barrymore could do drama? She’s a huge surprise in this film based on the real lives of “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale (Barrymore) and her mother, “Big Edie” Bouvier Beale (Jessica Lange), who were the subjects of Albert and David Maysles’ 1975 cult classic documentary. The touching, uncompromising film follows the Beales from their New York society heights of the 1930s to the 1970s, when Jackie O’s rich, eccentric relatives were found living with dozens of cats and raccoons in their run-down East Hampton estate, called Grey Gardens. Lange and Barrymore give exceptional performances as two women who, for whatever reason, went from beautiful to batty.

Posted at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 15

YES, ROSE STARRED IN "FROM JUSTIN TO KELLY"

Anika Noni Rose stars in HBO's "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency." RedEye/Chase Agnello-Dean photo

You can't keep Anika Noni Rose down.

The actress has chosen to play characters that, although outwardly very different, share her obviously indomitable spirit.

"I grew up in a little town and I decided to do something that people automatically were like, 'Really? Good luck,'" Rose told me during an interview at the RedEye offices. "I know that feeling that you are bigger than the constraints around you."

Posted at 8:15 p.m. Monday, April 13, 2009

Eric McCormack, Tom Cavanagh and “Trust Me” won’t be back on TNT. TNT photo

We saw the writing on the wall when Eric McCormack signed up to do a pilot for ABC. TNT isn’t bringing back McCormack’s “Trust Me” for a second season, the New York Times reported Friday. McCormack, Tom Cavanagh and Monica Potter starred in the comedy-drama about a Chicago advertising agency. TNT has three new dramas in the hopper—the Ray Romano series “Men of a Certain Age,” Jada Pinkett Smith’s “HawthoRNe,” and Dylan McDermott’s drama “Dark Blue.” (The show titles have apparently changed.)

Posted at 2:45 p.m. Monday, April 13

Queen Jane (Annabelle Wallis) will be long gone when King Henry VIII (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) returns for a fourth season. Showtime photo

Heads will continue to roll at Showtime next year. The network has picked up “The Tudors” for a fourth and final season. The drama, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as King Henry VIII, will delve into Henry’s life with his last two wives, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr, and his descent into madness, Showtime said. The 10 one-hour episodes will begin in Spring 2010. Production will begin this June in Dublin. Showtime says creator Michael Hirst will have written all 38 of the series episodes.

Posted at 4:30 p.m. Friday, April 10

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
8 p.m. Friday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Posted at 3 p.m. Thursday, April 9

MY "SOUTHLAND" REVIEW.

Ben McKenzie plays a rookie cop with secrets on "Southland." NBC photo

Benjamin McKenzie wasn’t looking to get back on TV after playing Ryan Atwood on “The O.C.”

But the 31-year-old read a script that he couldn’t put down—for NBC’s new police drama “Southland,” which airs at 9 p.m. Thursdays.

“I really fell in love with the pilot,” McKenzie told reporters during a conference call last week. “The writing is very intricate, the dialogue is somewhat sparse but there’s always a lot going on underneath.”

Posted at 8 a.m. Thursday, April 9

SOUTHLAND
9 p.m. Thursday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Posted at 10 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, 2009

We haven’t seen the end of “Pushing Daisies,” "Eli Stone" and “Dirty Sexy Money." ABC says it will air the unseen episodes of the cancelled series on Saturdays over the summer.

The “Pushing Daisies” news actually made me smile today. I miss it. Here’s the schedule from an ABC press release:

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 7:55 p.m. Tuesday, April 7

RESCUE ME
9 p.m. Tuesday, FX
Tune in or out? out of four.

I’ve watched the first four seasons of this darkly comic series only sporadically. But if Season 5 were a book, I’d have to say that I couldn’t put it down. I stayed up nearly all night watching. Denis Leary and his messed up firefighting crew revisit the 9-11 tragedy when a French author interviews them for a book project. Despite that bleak premise, “Rescue Me” is one of its funniest shows on TV. I didn’t remember that.

Posted at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 8

SPOILER ALERT! TURN AWAY OF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS WEEK'S "HOUSE" OR READ A PAPER OR WATCHED TV AT ALL THIS WEEK!

Kal Penn is leaving "House" for the White House, where he will work for President Obama, who he embraced at an inauguration event in January. Fox (above) & Getty Images (below) photos

Read this spoileriffic story by clicking the link below.

Posted at 8:30 a.m. Monday, April 6

When “Californication” returns to Showtime in the fall, horny author Hank (David Duchovny) will being working as a university professor.

Seriously? How’s he going to swing that and stay faithful to Karen (Natascha McElhone)? He won’t, not with Diane Farr (“Numb3rs”) playing a teacher’s assistant. Showtime says the two will “strike up a naughty relationship.”

Producers also have cast movie great Kathleen Turner and Peter Gallagher of “The O.C.” in the new season.

Turner, who starred in “Romancing the Stone” and “Peggy Sue Got Married,” stars as Charlie’s (Evan Handler) boss when he ditches working as a porn star agent. Turner will get to smolder like she did in “Body Heat” because her character has a thing for Charlie. She’ll star in 10 of the 12 episodes, Showtime says.

Gallagher will play the dean of students at Hank’s university. He and Hank won’t be getting along, but then Hank has had a problem with authority figures—which is surprising since he is an authority figure for daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin).

MORE GUEST STARS

Posted at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 5

Don’t mess with Meat Loaf.

The “Bat Out of Hell” singer guest stars on Monday’s “House," where Hugh Laurie’s cranky Dr. House berates Loaf’s critically ill character like he does everyone in his path.

That was fine for the show, Meat Loaf told reporters last week, but if a doctor was that mean in real life, look out.

Posted at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 5

Don’t mess with Meat Loaf.

The “Bat Out of Hell” singer guest stars on Monday’s “House," where Hugh Laurie’s cranky Dr. House berates Loaf’s critically ill character like he does everyone in his path.

That was fine for the show, Meat Loaf told reporters last week, but if a doctor was that mean in real life, look out.

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

THE TUDORS
8 p.m. Sunday, Showtime
Tune in or out? out of four.

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

THE TUDORS
8 p.m. Sunday, Showtime
Tune in or out? out of four.

Posted at 6:50 p.m. Friday, April 3

IN TREATMENT
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

Golden Globe winner Gabriel Byrne returns as Dr. Paul Weston, a psychotherapist who has demons of his own. The new season, like the critically acclaimed first, has Weston treating a handful of clients, then hitting the couch himself with his therapist, Dr. Gina Toll (Dianne Wiest). The drama is well-acted, and I suppose well-written. But it’s boring! Talk, talk, talk. Believe me, I have enough issues of my own. I don’t need to listen to this lot whine about theirs.

Posted at 6:50 p.m. Friday, April 3

IN TREATMENT
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

Golden Globe winner Gabriel Byrne returns as Dr. Paul Weston, a psychotherapist who has demons of his own. The new season, like the critically acclaimed first, has Weston treating a handful of clients, then hitting the couch himself with his therapist, Dr. Gina Toll (Dianne Wiest). The drama is well-acted, and I suppose well-written. But it’s boring! Talk, talk, talk. Believe me, I have enough issues of my own. I don’t need to listen to this lot whine about theirs.

Posted at 8 a.m. Thursday, April 2

Chicago insidER.
Chicagoan Sharif Atkins got break with “ER.”
A few words from Anthony Edwards, Noah Wyle<\a>
RedEye appears in final season of “ER.”
George Clooney’s return to the “ER.”
“ER” Chicago photo gallery.

“ER” closes shop after 15 years with a one-hour retrospective at 7 pm. Thursday, followed by a two-hour series finale that’s expected to bring back a lot of the old docs. Are you already suffering from medical TV withdrawal? Here's my prescription:

Posted at 8 a.m. Thursday, April 2

Chicago insidER.
Chicagoan Sharif Atkins got break with “ER.”
A few words from Anthony Edwards, Noah Wyle<\a>
RedEye appears in final season of “ER.”
George Clooney’s return to the “ER.”
“ER” Chicago photo gallery.

“ER” closes shop after 15 years with a one-hour retrospective at 7 pm. Thursday, followed by a two-hour series finale that’s expected to bring back a lot of the old docs. Are you already suffering from medical TV withdrawal? Here's my prescription:

Posted at 11:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 31

PEDRO
7 p.m. Wednesday, MTV
Tune in or out? out of four

Posted at 11:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 31

PEDRO
7 p.m. Wednesday, MTV
Tune in or out? out of four

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Monday, March 30

It’s almost like winning the state championships—thee years running. NBC and DirecTV made it official today: “Friday Night Lights” will be back for two more 13-episode seasons.

The partnership allowed for the current season of the NBC drama, based on the book and feature film about the townspeople in football-crazy Dillon, Texas. In the updated deal, DirecTV has exclusive rights to the series' fourth and fifth seasons on “The 101 Network.” NBC will air the shows later during each season.

"We're proud that a deal for the renewal of 'Friday Night Lights' has been reached," NBC co-chair Ben Silverman said in a release. "It is one of the best shows in the history of television and we've worked hard to keep it alive for future seasons.”

Now fans have to wonder what will happen to some favorite characters who are seniors: Tyra (Adrianne Palicki), Landry (Jesse Plemons), Riggins (Taylor Kitsch), Lyla (Minka Kelly) and Matt (Zach Gilford).

At least we know sophomore quarterback J.D. McCoy (Jeremy Sumpter) will be back, along with Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his wife and principal, Tami (Connie Britton).

Maybe NBC will strike a similar deal with DirecTV to keep "Chuck" on TV.

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Monday, March 30

It’s almost like winning the state championships—thee years running. NBC and DirecTV made it official today: “Friday Night Lights” will be back for two more 13-episode seasons.

The partnership allowed for the current season of the NBC drama, based on the book and feature film about the townspeople in football-crazy Dillon, Texas. In the updated deal, DirecTV has exclusive rights to the series' fourth and fifth seasons on “The 101 Network.” NBC will air the shows later during each season.

"We're proud that a deal for the renewal of 'Friday Night Lights' has been reached," NBC co-chair Ben Silverman said in a release. "It is one of the best shows in the history of television and we've worked hard to keep it alive for future seasons.”

Now fans have to wonder what will happen to some favorite characters who are seniors: Tyra (Adrianne Palicki), Landry (Jesse Plemons), Riggins (Taylor Kitsch), Lyla (Minka Kelly) and Matt (Zach Gilford).

At least we know sophomore quarterback J.D. McCoy (Jeremy Sumpter) will be back, along with Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his wife and principal, Tami (Connie Britton).

Maybe NBC will strike a similar deal with DirecTV to keep "Chuck" on TV.

Posted at 9:30 p.m. Monday, March 30

Sarah Paulson and Bobby Cannavale are better than the early episodes of "Cupid." ABC photos

CUPID
9 p.m Tuesday, ABC
Tune in our out? out of four.

Posted at 9:30 p.m. Monday, March 30

Sarah Paulson and Bobby Cannavale are better than the early episodes of "Cupid." ABC photos

CUPID
9 p.m Tuesday, ABC
Tune in our out? out of four.

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Monday, March 30

This in official news, but it is good news. NBC might be renewing “Friday Night Lights” for two more seasons. According to the Associated Press, “a person close to the production” said the drama will get two more 13-episode seasons, which means it will be on through the 2010-11 season.

The person, of course, spoke on condition of anonymity. I haven't heard back from two NBC sources I've tried to contact.

“Friday Night Lights” is far from a ratings winner, but has gained critical praise for NBC, who kept it on this year through a partnership with DirecTV.

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Monday, March 30

This in official news, but it is good news. NBC might be renewing “Friday Night Lights” for two more seasons. According to the Associated Press, “a person close to the production” said the drama will get two more 13-episode seasons, which means it will be on through the 2010-11 season.

The person, of course, spoke on condition of anonymity. I haven't heard back from two NBC sources I've tried to contact.

“Friday Night Lights” is far from a ratings winner, but has gained critical praise for NBC, who kept it on this year through a partnership with DirecTV.

Posted at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 29

RedEye appears in final season of “ER.”
George Clooney’s return to the “ER.”

After 15 years, “ER” closes shop this Thursday. At 7 p.m., NBC will air an hour-long retrospective of the ground-breaking series that was set and often filmed in Chicago, followed by a two-finale that will reunite several old characters—and the actors like Noah Wyle who played them.

Posted at 6:50 p.m. Friday, March 27

MAKING OF ME: JOHN BARROWMAN
6 and 9 p.m. Sunday, BBC America
Tune in or out? out of four.

The star of the “Torchwood,” who grew up in the Chicago area, returns to the Windy City as part of his search to uncover the origins of his homosexuality. He believes people are born gay, and he consults scientists using state-of-the-art research to prove it. Barrowman also judges the talent show “Any Dream Will Do,” in which 50 actors compete to play the lead in a new production of the musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” (4 and 7 p.m. BBC America).

Jill Scott and Desmond Dube star in "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency." HBO photo

THE NO. 1 LADIES’ DETECTIVE AGENCY
7 p.m Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

For a show involving crime fighting—and airing on HBO—this seven-episode series offers little darkness, instead remaining stubbornly positive as it moves at its own rambling tempo. In a word, it’s precious, like its lead character, Precious Ramotswe (singer Jill Scott), who begins sleuthing in her beloved Botswana. Scott shines, as does Anika Noni Rose as her fussy secretary. “No. 1” may be too sunny to keep HBO’s “Sopranos” fans happy, but Precious’ unrushed story is a refreshing, delightful change of pace.

LITTLE DORRIT
8 p.m. Sunday, WTTW
Tune in or out? out of four.

With times being so tough, you may not want to spend five Sundays watching this timely tale of chronic debt and financial ruin. This absorbing adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic offers a wonderful romance and riveting whodunit. Seamstress Amy Dorrit (Claire Foy) has lived her whole life in a debtors prison when she is summoned to work for cranky Mrs. Clennam (Judy Parfitt), whose estranged son, Arthur (Matthew Macfadyen), suspects may have caused the Dorrit clan’s troubles.

Posted at 10 p.m. Thursday, March 26

ANOTHER STRONG ROLE FOR ROSE

Anika Noni Rose stopped by RedEye in Tribune Tower on Thursday. RedEye/Chase Agnello-Dean

Anika Noni Rose has starred opposite some big-name singers.

In “Dreamgirls,” she sang with Beyonce and Chicago’s own Jennifer Hudson. In “From Justin to Kelly”—“a masterpiece,” she jokes—Rose danced with “American Idol” alums Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini.

But Rose, who won a 2004 Tony Award for best actress in a musical for “Caroline, or Change,” knows something about music too. And that helped her prepare for her latest role—a non-musical one—in HBO’s new series “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency.”

Posted at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, March 25

Will Lorraine Bracco (left) and James Gandolfini be revisiting New Jersey? HBO photo

“The Sopranos” ended its HBO run with a controversial fade to black.

Is creator David Chase (right) about to turn the lights back on? Series co-star Lorraine Bracco says yes. Well, maybe.

Bracco, who played Dr. Jennifer Melfi, psychiatrist to mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), told AOL Television that Chase is preparing to write a film version. AOL interviewed her after naming “The Sopranos” the No. 1 TV drama of all time.

“I'm so glad that he's going to write the movie soon,” she told AOL TV, adding that she is “trying to make him crazy and write the script before we all get too old and fat.”

Later in the interview when asked specifically about plans for a movie, Bracco did a reverse.

“I have no idea. But you know, it is something that I bring up with him,” she said. “I hope [Tony’s] fine, happy in New Jersey, bringing AJ to colleges. I think that would be a great way to start the movie, bringing AJ to colleges ... It would be very funny.”

An HBO spokeswoman on Wednesday whacked the idea of a "Sopranos" feature.

"I'm not aware that anything is going on with that," she told me, adding that the movie sounds like "something on [Bracco's] wish list."

Bada bing.

Chase currently is working on a miniseries for HBO, called “A Ribbon of Dreams, about the history of the Hollywood film industry. According to the network, the mini will begin in 1913 and follow two men who form an unlikely producing partnership in a very young Hollywood. The duo will cross career paths with such Hollywood greats as John Ford, John Wayne, Bette Davis and Billy Wilder.

Posted at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Dr. House may not be getting the final word on an upcoming episode of “House.”

The episode, called “Locked In,” is the first “House” hour to be shot and told almost entirely from the patient’s perspective.

Mos Def stars as that patient, named Lee. He suffers from “locked-in” syndrome, which means he can’t move or communicate after a bicycle accident. House (Hugh Laurie) and his team must try to “unlock” Lee before it’s too late.

The episode features a song by Mos Def called “Life in Marvelous Times,” which has been made into the video preview above. The episode airs at 7 p.m. Monday on Fox.

Posted at 8:25 a.m. Tuesday, March 24

For Jennifer Beals, the new "L Word" is "lie," as in "Lie to Me."

The Chicago native will guest star for several episodes on Fox’s “Lie to Me” in a plum role as Zoe Landau, Dr. Cal Lightman’s (Tim Roth) ex-wife and Emily’s (Hayley McFarland) mom, Fox announced.

Apparently Landau and Lightman still have feelings for one another. Things get complicated when Landau, an assistant U.S. attorney, hires The Lightman Group to help with an arson case.

Beals debuts on the show beginning April 29. Her Showtime series, "The L Word," recently ended its run.

Posted at 5:30 p.m. Monday, March 23

Nothing against Holly Hunter, but Kenny Johnson seems happy their “Saving Grace” characters are no longer sleeping together.

Johnson, who plays Oklahoma City Det. Ham Dewey, the former partner and lover to Hunter’s Det. Grace Hanadarko, said that getting naked on set isn’t as fun as viewers might think.

“I always think ‘Just suck in and tighten your stomach,’” he told me during an interview at the Four Seasons. “Every [scene] I’m so in the moment of doing what I’m doing I’ve never sucked in my stomach. When I’m done with the whole scene I’m like, ‘God dang it, I forgot again.’”

Johnson’s character hasn’t been stripping down since the TNT drama, airing at 9 p.m. Mondays, resumed its sophomore season earlier this month. After the death of his brother and the breakup of his marriage, Ham took a break from Grace—both in the office and under the sheets.

Even though they’re speaking and may partner up again as cops, she’s keeping a cool distance.

“She was like, ‘I’m outta here, dude,’” Johnson said, adding that their troubles will carry into Season 3, which begins filming April 1. “He gets distanced more and more by what he said, that he can’t be with her. Grace will not accept him back so easily.”

“The Shield” veteran said that the Ham-Grace dynamic is what drew him to “Saving Grace,” not to mention the chance to work with Hunter.

“I fell in love with Holly when she was in ‘Raising Arizona,’” Johnson said. “She’s so unbelievably thorough and well thought-out with everything she does, it’s mind-boggling.

“Being in [an acting] situation with Holly, it’s hard not to be in the moment, right there, with her. I mean, she’s amazing; she’s that good.”

Johnson and I talked more about Hunter, being naked and “The Shield.” Read on by clicking the link below.

Posted at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, March 21

Sunday is finale night on HBO, as “Big Love,” “Flight of the Conchords” and “Eastbound & Down” wrap their seasons. Sunday night won't be the same.

BIG LOVE
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO

The exemplary and controversial third season has been building to tonight’s showdown between Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton, right), his double-crossing second wife Nicki (Chloe Sevigny) and her evil father, Roman (Harry Dean Stanton).

FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS
9 p.m. Sunday, HBO

In the finale of the uneven second season, Bret and Jemaine are forced to move in with superfan Mel (Kristen Schaal). It should be a fun send-off—possibly forever. The guys still are talking about this season being the end.

Danny McBride (above) brought the heat--and the funny--to the first season of "Eastbound & Down." HBO photos

EASTBOUND & DOWN
9:30 p.m. Sunday, HBO

The too-short first season of the comedy ends with foul-mouthed Kenny (Danny McBride) leaving his teaching job for another shot at the major leagues.

Posted at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 17

As if Josh Schwartz isn’t busy enough with his hilarious spy comedy “Chuck” (watch it, it’s awesome) and the bitchy soap “Gossip Girl,” he’s launching a new show Tuesday on TheWB.com.

Schwartz teams with co-executive producer Alexandra Patsavas on “Rockville CA,” a 20-episode scripted series set in a fictional L.A. rock club called Rockville. It follows several twentysomethings who work and/or hang out at the club, and features tons of known and up-and-coming bands.

Just from watching the preview clip above, "Rockville CA" appears to have Schwartz's signature sharp banter between characters. And it has some great music from such bands as Kaiser Chiefs, Phantom Planet, Travis, The Duke Spirit, Eagles of Death Metal, The Kooks, Bishop Allen and The Broken West.

You can thank Patsavas for finding the cool new bands. She’s made a name for herself in Hollywood as the music supervisor for such shows as Schwartz’s “The O.C.” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” She helped introduce several acts to America, including The Killers (“The O.C.”), Death Cab for Cutie (“The O.C.”) and The Fray (”Grey’s Anatomy”).

The series debuts Tuesday with four episodes that run between four and six minutes. Two new episodes will post every Tuesday through May 12. If you like the music you hear—The WB promises no lip-synching—you’ll be able to stream or download exclusive live music tracks from the show, watch videos, download a content-rich ”Rockville CA” widget, and enjoy exclusive band interviews and other “Rockville CA” content at TheWB's RockvilleCA site.

Click the link below to learn more about the first four episodes and the show’s stars.

Posted at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, March 15

CHRIS EGAN IS ONE OF MANY AUSSIES ON U.S. TV
AUSSIE PHOTO GALLERY

KINGS
7 p.m. Sunday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Give NBC some props, people. Despite drowning in one of the worst periods in its history, the network still insists on bringing quality, innovative programming to TV.

NBC has tossed some real stink-bombs on the little screen in recent years while grasping for a hit. But it’s also giving truly wonderful shows a chance to gain viewers. Ratings be damned, the proud Peacock seems to be saying as it continues to support outstanding, yet little watched programs (on TV proper anyway) such as “The Office,” “30 Rock,” “Friday Night Lights” and—keeping my fingers crossed for the future—“Chuck.”

Add “Kings” to that list. The invigorating new drama is an ambitious, atypical program for network TV. It’s not another cop drama, which could be its undoing.

In his contemporary retelling of the Biblical story of David, Goliath and King Saul, Michael Green has created a challenging soap opera filled with palace intrigues, secret romances, betrayals and “Deadwood” veteran Ian McShane.

McShane rules, literally, by honing his Al Swearengen persona into devious King Silas Benjamin, the Saul-like monarch overlooking Gilboa, a fantasyland not unlike America that is fighting for its survival in a war against neighboring Gath.

When Silas learns that a young soldier—David Shepherd (Chris Egan)—has faced down a Gath tank, which incidentally are called Goliaths—and saved his soldier son Jack (Sebastian Stan), he summons the boy to the capitol city of Shiloh.

Silas simultaneously exploits, embraces and fears the war hero, whose swelling popularity threatens the king. All the ever-so-humble former farm boy wants is to get back to his brother and friends on the frontlines, to serve his leader—and date Silas’ idealistic daughter Michelle (Allison Miller).

The rest of Silas’ family and confidantes heat up the already steamy brew. Susanna Thompson plays Silas’ scheming Queen Rose with delicious deviance. She may know about Silas’ secret lover and son on the side. Their troubled son, Jack, keeps his own secrets that could embarrass his father. And Rev. Samuals (Eamonn Walker), Silas’ former confidante who believes the king has lost his way, appears to know something about David destiny.

“Kings’ is definitely an odd duck of a show. At times it overbakes the dialogue—“ War asks the heart to freeze at room temperature,” Silas says. Then the writers come up with a gem of a phrase, as when David tells Michelle what he thinks of the people in court, "In the sea of fish, you're a mermaid.”

It follows the Old Testament story so closely, and invokes God’s name throughout, which might be too much for some viewers.

But I’m hoping “Kings” finds an audience. The stellar cast, the intriguing storytelling possibilities and the intricate details brought to the world Green and his writers have created have me hooked.

“Kings” is unlike anything else on TV. That’s reason enough to tune in.

Posted at 10:30 p.m. Thursday, March 12

George Clooney and Julianna Margulies checked back into “ER” on Thursday in an unsentimental, excellent episode.

Their characters, Doug Ross and Carol Hathaway, are still together and living in Seattle, where they were trying to convince a grandmother played by Susan Sarandon to donate the organs of her grandson.

Their scenes with Sarandon were the touching, emotional kind that “ER” fans have grown accustomed to, but having Clooney and Margulies back one last time made them extra special.

I applaud the “ER” writers for not getting cheesy on us. I sooo wanted Doug and Carol to figure out that the kidney they were securing would save their old Chicago co-worker, Dr. John Carter (Noah Wyle), who was being attended to by another old County General doc, Peter Benton (Eriq La Salle). But Doug and Carol didn't learn how close they were to reconnecting with Carter and Benton.

It was frustrating, but perfect.

NBC has several clips from the episode, which I’ve posted here. Ross does reminisce about Country General with Dr. Neela Rasgotra (Parminder Nagra) and Nurse Samantha Taggart (Linda Cardellini), who are in Seattle to collect the liver and a heart. But the pair doesn’t know most of the former Country General folks he mentions.

Click the link below for more videos from NBC featuring Clooney.

Posted at 11:12 a.m. Thursday, March 12

So the rumors are true: George Clooney will be on Thursday’s “ER” along with Julianna Margulies. It airs at 9 p.m. Thursday on NBC.

Why NBC didn't promote the heck out of this I don't know, but today they're confirming, through a PR firm, that Clooney does come back as Dr. Doug Ross. Alums Margulies, Eriq LaSalle and Noah Wyle also guest star.

“Access Hollywood” talked to Clooney and Margulies about their “ER” roles. The romance between his Doug Ross and her Nurse Carol Hathaway almost never happened, the stars said. Here’s a clip from the “Access Hollywood” interviews.

Check the blog after the show. I’ll have clips from the episode.

Posted at 4:30 p.m. Friday, March 6

ASHES TO ASHES
8 p.m. Saturday, BBC America
Tune in or out? out of four.

You don’t have to feel nostalgia for the 1980s to get into this sequel to the British hit “Life on Mars,” but it sure helps.

Fuzzy perms, leg warmers and Adam Ant—you’ll find them all when modern-day police psychologist Alex Drake (Keeley Hawes) is transported back to 1981 after being shot. It’s a fantastical leap for viewers, but one they’ve already taken with “Life on Mars,” which saw contemporary cop Sam Tyler make a similarly surreal trip to 1973, where he fought crime and butted heads with racist, sexist detective Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister).

Alex has studied up on Sam’s case—he did make it back to his real life and report his experience, but that’s all I’ll spoil of “Mars”—and she’s more than equipped to handle the situation. She knows all about Gene and his boys, and laughs off their sexist remarks by calling them “figments.”

In the original “Mars”—not the current ABC version—Sam constantly fretted over his situation. Although she’s not exaclty shouting “I love the ’80s,” Alex seems to be having a better time. She’s rocking the off-the-shoulder sweat shirt look of Jennifer Beals in “Flashdance,” guzzling booze, dancing to an ’80s soundtrack (Adam Ant again) and sexing with a slick businessman. <

Alex knows that she’s in a coma and dreaming, saying matter-of-factly, “I might be one second away from life or one second way from death.”

All she’s got to do to mind-leap back to the present and the daughter she misses is snap out of it, she decides. She searches for clues in her casework and tries to make peace with her mother, who will be killed later in 1981, in order to trigger that wake-up call.

Maybe reliving the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana will shock her back to her future.

Posted at 2 a.m. Friday, March 6

BREAKING BAD
9 p.m. Sunday, AMC
Tune in or out? out of four.

Walter White is living one of life’s little ironies.

Before he went into business cooking meth, Walt (Bryan Cranston) was a wimpy high school chemistry teacher in New Mexico struggling to support his pregnant wife and teen son. It took a death sentence—he learned he had terminal lung cancer—for him to start living. Sure, he’s thriving on the wrong side of the law, but he’s gained the purpose, passion and power he’d never before possessed.

The show’s second season picks up right where the excellent first left off. Walt and his former student/now drug meth-making partner, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), are selling their improved product to sadistic Mexican drug lord Tuco (a scary Raymond Cruz). Walt figures he has to make just 11 more sales before he earns enough money to take care of his family before he dies.

That plan changes when Tuco takes a snort of Walt's new drug and gets so amped up he kills one of his buddies—making Walt and Jesse witnesses to murder.

But Tuco is the least of Walt’s worries. His DEA agent brother-in-law, Hank (Dean Norris), has video footage showing Walt and Jesse—hilariously disguised and fumbling—as they steal a barrel of chemicals for the meth lab. Hank doesn’t know it’s them, but he’s closing in on Walt’s secret life. Walt’s wife, Skyler (Anna Gunn), also grows suspicious that her hubby is hiding something.

Walt comes up with a plan to cut ties with Tuco and throw his own family off his trail. But as usual, things go tragically—sometimes comically wrong—for Walt and Jesse.

That’s the beauty of “Breaking Bad”: It’s bleak and brutal, but it’s also darkly humorous. And if ever an actor earned his Emmy, Cranston did last year. With quiet magnetism, he exposes Walt’s complicated, conflicted psyche to viewers. Loving family man or stone-cold killer? Brilliant chemist or bumbling businessman? He’s all of these, and you’ll love him for it.

Posted at 10:30 p.m. Sunday, March 1

SAVING GRACE
9 p.m. Monday, TNT
Tune in or out? out of four.

As if Oklahoma City Det. Grace Hanadarko doesn’t have enough problems, she now has to break in new rookie partner Abby Charles (guest star Christina Ricci).

“Are you crying? You don't cry at a crime scene,” Holly Hunter’s Grace tells Abby after bawling her out for being late.

It’s Abby’s introduction to the hard-charging, whiskey-guzzling, sex-loving Grace viewers have come to know and love, thanks to Hunter’s soulful, honest portrayal of the flawed woman.

Her intense acting is matched by that of other cast members, including Kenny Johnson as her former partner/lover, Ham, and Laura San Giacomo as her friend, Rhetta.

Unfortunately, the show’s realism is often undercut by the presence of Earl (Leon Rippy), Grace’s guardian angel. I think the show could stand on its own without Earl. The writers offer up rich, emotional story lines with surprising twists that don't need the supernatural elements to keep our interest.

Posted at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28

“The Simpsons” isn’t the only show to earn more air time. Fans will get more “Survivor” and “Crash” in the future too.

CBS has announced the 19th and 20th editions of “Survivor” that will air in the 2009-2010 season. “Survivor: Tocatins” currently airs at 7 p.m. Thursdays, drawing 12.3 million viewers this week against “American Idol.” CBS didn’t announce where the new editions would be filmed.

Starz Entertainment renewed "Crash" for its second season that will air this fall. The network’s first original drama wrapped its 13-episode first season in January. Starz announced that writer/producer Ira Steven Behr ("The 4400," "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," "The Twilight Zone") will be executive producer/showrunner for the second season, while James DeMonaco ("The Kill Point") will exec produce and Todd Harthan ("The Kill Point") will be supervising producer.

Also last week, Fox renewed “The Simpsons” for its 21st and 22nd seasons.

Posted at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24

Apparently something’s working over at The CW. The network, which ejected its entire Sunday night line-up earlier this year, has picked up several of its series for next season.

“Gossip Girl,” “One Tree Hill,” “90210,” “America’s Next Top Model,” “Smallville” and “Supernatural” all will be back for another season, the network announced Tuesday. Let’s hope “Reaper” is added to that list. It returns March 3—up against “American Idol” unfortunately.

Posted at 1 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 22

Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) and Walt White (Bryan Cranston) in “Breaking Bad.” AMC photo

Brian Cranston doesn’t return to his Emmy-winning role as Walt on AMC’s “Breaking Bad” until 9 p.m. March 8, but you can watch him now at AMC’s press site.

The network has created five minisodes here and a customized viral video with Cranston called “Walt’s Warning” here. All seven Season 1 episodes of “Breaking Bad” will be made into 5-minute shorts that can be watched at on The Minisode Network on Crackle, YouTube, MySpace, AOL Video, Hulu, Adobe Media Player, Sling, TV.com, Veoh and on mobile at Verizon Wireless' V CAST Video service and Sprint TV.

Cranston’s also a director, and at 10 p.m. March 7 fans can watch his directorial debut of the romantic drama “Last Chance” on WeTV. According to We, Cranston wrote and directed the film for his wife, actress Robin Dreardon, who stars with him in the film.

Here’s We’s description of the film: “LAST CHANCE tells the story of Lauren, a woman in a small town who’s been stripped of all aspirations. Resigned to her life with a louse of a husband, she pragmatically trudges about her everyday existence with no hope, except that her kids may have a better life. But when she makes the acquaintance of Sam, an older man who has lived his entire life driven by his dreams, she might just find the inspiration to truly live to the fullest.”

Posted at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20

The "Dollhouse" cast: Tahmoh Penikett (from left), Enver Gjokaj, Eliza Dushku, Dichen Lachman, Fran Kranz, Olivia Williams and Harry Lennix. Fox photo

DOLLHOUSE
8 p.m. Fridays, Fox
Tune in or out? out of four.

I’m a big fan of Joss Whedon and his series’ “Firefly,” “Angel” and, of course, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”

“Dollhouse” is none of those. And honestly, I’m disappointed. I’m not suggesting the guy needs to repeat himself to make me happy, but his Web hit “Dr. Horrible” was perfectly different and I loved it.

Whedon’s getting a little too serious with “Dollhouse,” in which a covert group is convincing people who have no other options to have their minds wiped clean of their own memories. After that, the “dolls,” or “actives,” are imprinted with the memories of others in order to assume different identities for each mission.

It’s a little human trafficking mixed with fractured identities injected with a little weird science—and a whole lot of boredom. "Dollhouse" seems to be devoid of any of the joy in those other shows.

At this point the actives, chief among them Echo (who in her past life was Caroline), mindlessly trade pleasantries at the Dollhouse, get massages, swim, shower and sleep. Nothing too exciting there.

My belief was that their missions, or engagements as Dollhouse doyenne Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams) calls them, would allow the actives to really bust out the personalities and action. But Eliza Dushku, as nice as she is to look at as Echo, seems kind of brain-drained no matter who she is. In last week’s misfire of a series premiere, she played a troubled hostage negotiator. On tonight’s much better second episode, she’s an adventurous gal on a hunting date with the devil. Bows and arrows, backwoods, dead rangers—you’d think there’d be plenty of opportunity for Dushku to give us just a glimmer of her “Buffy” slayer Faith. Instead, she’s a scared victim until the last part of the episode.

Yawn. I want some action. I want some mystery. I want a lot more smart-ass dialogue. (Ironic boy genius Topher (Fran Kranz) provides some, but even he’s a little lethargic.)

Hope comes in the form of FBI agent Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett), who is hell-bent on uncovering the “urban legend” of the Dollhouse, as well as the series’ mythology involving an escaped active called Alpha. This guy has recovered his memories (and has kept a lot of imprinted knife skills) and is secretly feeding Ballard hints about the dolls, as well as killing people. All that becomes more firmly established tonight and next week.

Maybe Dushku’s Echo—and the series—will get more interesting as she and the other actives start to malfunction like Alpha, regaining some of their own memories. Maybe then she’ll show us all some personality.

Posted at 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20

TAKING CHANCE
7 p.m. Saturday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

Kevin Bacon (right) is an understated wonder in this fact-based film that follows Marine Lt. Col. Michael Strobl as he volunteers to escort the body of Lance Cpl. Chance Phelps to his Wyoming family after the 19-year-old was killed in Iraq in April 2004.

Bacon’s disciplined, poignant performance makes viewers feel every emotion that Strobl feels—from guilt for being a “desk-jockey” and not fighting in Iraq to honor for caring for a fallen Marine to pride, sadness and humility.

The story hits its emotional peak when, as Phelps’ body is removed from a plane, civilians all around stop to silently show their respects—and seemingly thank Strobl for taking on his difficult task. It’s a powerful moment in a simple, honest film that may move slowly at times, but will leave even the most cynical viewers pondering the preciousness of life.

Posted at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20

Shelley Conn (from left), Sharon Small, Sarah Parish and Orla Brady star in “Mistresses.” BBC America photo.

MISTRESSES
7 p.m. Friday, BBC America
Tune in or out? out of four.

Honestly, I don’t know how the quartet of British women in this series—doctor Katie (Sarah Parish), lawyer Siobhan (Orla Brady), event planner Jessica (Shelley Conn) and 9/11 widow Trudi (Sharon Small)—manage their time so well. They work, keep decent-looking places, take care of the kids or hubby, go to the gym, have secret affairs and, somehow, manage to get together and dish at least once a week. How!?

Throw that hard-to-swallow scenario aside and you may just enjoy this “Sex and the City”/“Desperate Housewives”/“Lipstick Jungle”-inspired drama. It’s similar to all those shows, except the melodrama isn’t as goofy and the dialogue is cheekier. (Am I using “cheeky” correctly, Anglophiles?)

Because it strips away all the flipness of those other shows, you're left with the women and whether you agree or disagree with their lack of self-control. Wait, that sounds judgmental, doesn't it? I'd be the last guy to fault a person for getting some, but the situations these women—especially Katie—find themselves in makes you wonder what they are thinking.

I connected most with Trudi, who gets a $2 million payoff for her hubby’s death, but isn’t sure she wants to cash the check—or start dating the single father of her daughter’s BFF. Now there’s a character I haven’t seen on any TV show.

Posted at 9:15 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18

Noah Wyle (right) returns to “ER” at 9 p.m. Thursday, part of the parade of the show’s former stars guest starring in the series’ 15th and final season.

I talked to Wyle in November, when he said that the only reason he left “ER” after 11 years playing Dr. John Carter was his growing family.

“I would have stayed with ‘ER’ probably until it ended had my son not been born,” he said. “That was the first time I ever looked at my watch on set and thought, ‘Let’s get going. I got some place I want to be.’”

Watch the video above from NBC for more from Wyle, and check out my earlier interview with him here and here.

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 3 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2

MONDAY'S "CHUCK"
MONDAY'S "HOUSE"
MONDAY'S "HEROES"

"Medium" stars Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber love their onscreen marriage. NBC photo

MEDIUM
9 p.m. Monday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

One of the most endearing things about NBC’s veteran drama “Medium” is the relationship between Patricia Arquette’s psychic character, Allison DuBois, and Jake Weber’s mild-mannered Joe.

There isn’t a better marriage on TV, it seems.

“For me that is the foundation and the heart and soul [of the show],” Arquette told reporters last week during a phone interview. “[It’s] what I care about and what I thought was interesting about it.”

“Medium” returns at 9 p.m. Monday for its fifth season, and the first episode contains a wonderful scene between Arquette and Weber in which a discussion about their three children turns into a little teasing. It’s a sweet, lovely moment among the nastiness that Allison psychically dreams up to solve crimes.

Weber says it’s this easy rapport that allows the couple to have such a good marriage.

“I think they make each other laugh; they tease each other,” he said. “I think that they fight hard but they make up very easily. And I think that that’s a hard thing to do in relationships, you know, if you have a strong-willed individuals. ... When they do get into conflict they resolve it quickly because there’s a very strong sort of foundation there of respect and love and lots of fun.”

In Monday’s premiere, the couple deal with a family issue when daughter Bridget (an engaging Maria Lark) repeatedly draws nude pictures of her male art teacher. Meanwhile, Allison works a case in which a woman marries the man who killed her first husband in a car accident after he convinces her he is the resurrected spirit of dead hubby No. 1.

It sounds bizarre, but fans—and Arquette—love the mix of family realism with Allison’s psychic sleuthing of chilling murders.

“Family life is a little bit monotonous,” Arquette said. “You need that with this crazy kind of [psychic] premise. I think you need that normalcy.”

For more from the interview, click the link below.

Posted at 8 a.m. Monday, Feb. 2

MONDAY'S "CHUCK"
MONDAY'S "HEROES"
MONDAY'S "MEDIUM"

House (Hugh Laurie), Kutner (Kal Penn) and Taub (Peter Jacobson) treat an esteemed cancer researcher (Judith Scott) in "The Greater Good." Fox photo

HOUSE: THE GREATER GOOD
7 p.m. Monday, Fox
Tune in or out? out of 4.

I might be the only person I know who isn’t blown away by “House.” It’s a well-acted, fine drama, to be sure.

I just don’t need a weekly dose of it.

The drama celebrates its 100th episode Monday, and as far as I can tell, “The Greater Good” is pretty much the same basic story as the previous 99.

A patient is admitted to the hospital with an unexplained illness. The grumpy genius Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) is totally indifferent to the patient’s feelings. He bullies and berates his team of underlings to figure out a diagnosis. He puts the patient through dozens of tests and procedures, taking time out only to make life worse for his boss, Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelestein), and his BFF (if such a jerk can have one), Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard).

Before House solves the medical mystery in the last few minutes, he and the team learn things about themselves based on the patient’s condition.

“House” couldn’t get any more formulaic, so it’s a good thing Laurie is starring as the pill-popping, wisecracking doctor. He gives this jerk a brutal honesty, cutting wit and, just peeking through that tough, sarcastic shield, a bit of humanity.

In “The Greater Good,” the team treats a former cancer researcher who left her career to pursue personal happiness. Her decision makes House and his staff members question their own choices.

It’s a fine example of how this series works—how it’s always worked. I’m just not dying to watch more of the same.

So what’s wrong with me? Let me self-diagnose: I am not addicted to “House.”

Posted at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28

“Grey’s Anatomy” creator Shonda Rhimes is working on a new pilot for ABC about Washington, D.C., journalists.

ABC has approved “Inside the Box,” according to TV Guide and The Hollwood Reporter. The series focuses on a female news producer and her co-workers. What they do after reporting the news is the big news in the series, ABC says.

ABC also OK’d “I, Claudia,” about a prosecutor who is destined to be considered for U.S. president. Another pilot now going into production is an adaptation of Argentine series “Brothers & Detectives.” “Dexter” producer Daniel Cerone is developing the untitled project about a detective with an 11-year-old brother who helps him solve crimes.

“Doogie Howser, P.I.”?

Posted at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24

Ryan Kelley and Sigourney Weaver star in "Prayer for Bobby." Lifetime photos

PRAYERS FOR BOBBY
8 p.m. Saturday, Lifetime
Tune in or out? out of four.

Sigourney Weaver makes her TV movie debut in “Prayers For Bobby,” elevating the beyond the usual Lifetime weeper of the week.

Lifetime should feel fortunate to have Weaver, because the film, based on Leroy Aarons' true-life book, is none too subtle in getting its very important message across: Treating homosexuality as a sin or “abomination” does no one any good.

Weaver plays God-fearing Mary Griffith, whose idyllic late 1970s suburban life is shattered when her son, Bobby (a terrific Ryan Kelley, right), tells the family he's gay.

Quoting Bible passages and evoking eternal damnation, Mary tries to "cure" Bobby, causing him such emotional turmoil that the 20-year-old kills himself.

It’s only after the tragedy that a tormented Mary begins to understand her intolerance has wreaked havoc on the entire family. Searching for answers, she reaches out to the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church and the group Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. Eventually she changes her anti-gay beliefs and becomes a fierce human rights advocate.

“Bobby” plays a little too simplistically, but thanks to Weaver, Kelley and a few other heartbreaking performances, its delivers a strong message about love and acceptance.

Posted at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18

Ginnifer Goodwin (from left), Jeanne Tripplehorn, Bill Paxton and Chloe Sevigny star in "Big Love." HBO photo

BIG LOVE
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton), his three wives and all their children finally return for their third season after a long delay, and it’s worth the wait.

Yes, you read that correctly: three wives. The Henricksons are polygamists with a very complicated family tree.

Bill’s No. 1 wife, Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn), gets some bad medical news that makes her urge wives Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nicki (Chloe Sevigny) to accept a fourth wife.

Nicki’s dad, “prophet” Roman Grant (Harry Dean Stanton) is in jail for transferring minors across state lines, betrayed by his greedy son, Alby (Matt Ross), who wants to take over the polygamist community of Juniper Creek.

Bill is dealing with all this, plus getting a gambling business off the ground and fighting his neighbors, who are reacting badly to learning just what Nicki’s dad has done.

As if the Henricksons’ lives aren’t complicated enough, Nicki gets a job at the Utah attorney general's office so she can secretly keep an eye on the state’s case against Roman. Bill is forced to go back to Juniper Creek, where he is banned, to help a boy who has been railroaded by the polygamists. He also is trying to woo a fourth wife, and Barb finds out she has cancer.

The first two episodes are as solid and rewarding as the series ever has been, but the third, in which Barb and Bill’s daughter, Sarah (Amanda Seyfried), goes to the prom, is truly jarring.

Posted at 11:50 a.m. Friday, January 16

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
8 p.m. Friday, NBC
Tune in or out? out of four.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
9 p.m. Friday, Sci Fi
Tune in or out? out of four.

Two of TV’s most underwatched series return Friday night—and both deserved to be embraced by larger audiences.

"Friday Night Lights" already has aired its terrific third season on DirecTV, but for most fans, NBC’s airing will be their first chance to check in with the folks in football-crazed Dillon, Texas. The incredible cast is led by the amazing Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton (right).

During the new season fans will say goodbye to two favorite characters, Tami (Britton) becomes the new school principal and Coach (Chandler) must deal with the cocky father of a talented new QB (Jeremy Sumpter). That means QB1 Matt (Zach Gilford) has some competition.

Admittedly, the show was derailed in its second season by Landry Clark’s (Jesse Plemons) murder storyline, but this season it’s back where it belongs, showing the high drama in everyday life. (Read my full review here.)

Things get compellingly strange on "Battlester Galactica," which begins its final 10 episodes Friday. Fans know that the humans and Cylons have begrudgingly teamed to find Earth. But when they got their, all that was left was a nuclear wasteland.

Where do they go now? No spoilers here. Sci Fi has sworn critics to secrecy. In fact, the network didn’t include the final scene of the episode in screeners, which presumably offers the big reveal we’ve all been waiting for: who the final Cylon is.

Honestly though, I wouldn’t want to ruin for you the whiplash-inducing ride this episode takes us on. There is a “what the frak!?” moment nearly every 10 minutes, so don’t miss it.

"BSG" transcends the sci fi genre to deliver a thoughtful take on what it means to be human. It’s intelligent, literary television.

Posted at 11:15 a.m. Friday, Jan. 16

File this under shocking: NBC announced Thursday that “Lipstick Jungle” is not, after all, canceled.

Angela Bromstad, new president of prime-time entertainment for NBC, told the Television Critics Association in California that she feels “very strongly” about the Brooke Shields series, according to reports.

"I think there are alternatives we may look into,” she said. “It's all a conversation for the fall.”

The outlook for “Knight Rider” and “Kath & Kim” isn’t so rosey. Bromstad said those shows are "indicative of shows that may or may not be coming back." Christian Slater’s “My Own Worst Enemy” already is canceled.

The NBC exec expressed optimism about “Life” and “Friday Night Lights,” which returns to NBC Friday night in “Lipstick’s” time slot.

"What we're intending to do is make sure that we have a good amount of pilots to choose from,” Bromstad said. “We're going to have to beat existing shows [with ones showing more promise] or bring those shows back.”

Posted at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15

NBC gave comedy fans good news on Thursday: “30 Rock” and “The Office” will be back for the 2009-10 season.

The network set a premiere date for Amy Poehler’s new comedy, which still has no name; it will debut at 7:30 p.m. April 9. The new police drama “Southland” will debut the same night, at 9 p.m.

In other NBC news, “The Biggest Loser” was renewed for another season and “ER” was given three more episodes for its current and final season. That means the finale will air April 2.

A new cooking competition series, called “The Chopping Block,” will begin at 7 p.m. March 11. And the premiere date of the new drama "Kings" is now at 7 p.m. March 15. Go to the jump to read NBC’s descriptions of the series.

Posted at 10 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14

The “Gossip Girl” rumors are flaring again, now that Zap2it's Korbi Ghosh is reporting executive producers Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage have started work on a new original series that would follow the wild teen years of Lily Rhoades, who is now Lily van der Woodsen Bass (Kelly Rutherford, right).

Zap2it says inside sources claim the May 11th episode of “Gossip Girl” will serve as a backdoor pilot for the new series.

Here’s what Zap2it says about the new show: After a falling out with her well-to-do California parents, young Lily is forced to move in with her ne'er-do-well sister who's slumming it in the Valley. Suddenly without the means she's used to, Lily begins living two lives, often crossing "over-the-hill," trying to fit into the fast-paced Hollywood world as well.

That’s all I have for you, readers. XOXO, me.

Posted at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9

Teri Polo (above left), Jason Priestley and Cheech Marin star in "Expecting a Miracle." Also starring are Shalim Ortiz (below left), Kevin Hernandez and Rebeka Montoya. Hallmark photos

EXPECTING A MIRACLE
8 p.m. Saturday, Hallmark
out of four.

With the title “Expecting a Miracle,” this slight-but-sweet TV movie has to be about a baby, right? Yes, it is that obvious, with a main plot that follows an L.A. couple (Jason Priestley and Teri Polo) who are about to break up because they can’t get pregnant. It also offers a subplot about a Mexican boy with a bum leg and his wise priest (Cheech Marin). They both teach the couple powerful lessons while providing a whole lot of hopeful Hallmark moments. Yes, I did shed a little tear.

Posted at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9

"Flashpoint" showcases great folk songs. Listen here.

Amy Jo Johnson, Hugh Dillon, Enrico Colantini and David Paetkau play SRU team members in "Flashpoint." CBS photo

FLASHPOINT
8 p.m. Friday, CBS
out of four.

CBS’ surprise hit from last summer returns for its new season with members of an elite police tactical unit working as bodyguards for a business mogul (Colm Feore) and his wife (Wendy Crewson).

I like this series. The task force is called upon each week to stop a hostage crisis, take down a sniper or some other tough job. The ace cast playing the officers includes Enrico Colantoni, Amy Jo Johnson, David Paetkau and especially Hugh Dillon.

As sniper Ed Lane, Dillon truly explores the emotional toll the job takes on his character's personal life. He makes the series more than just another cop drama.

Posted at 9:20 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 8

Dylan McDermott will star in "The Line." TNT photo

Has Jerry Bruckheimer ever seen a cop drama he didn’t want to make into a TV series?

I don’t think so, but that’s probably a good thing. The producer of the “CSI” series and practically everything else on CBS is working with TNT this time on the new cop drama “The Line.”

The 10-episode first season, starring Dylan McDermott, will debut sometime this year along with the medical drama "Time Heals," TNT said in a press release. The series co-stars Logan Marshall-Green, Omari Hardwick and Nicki Aycox.

Here’s TNT’s description of the show:

McDermott stars as Carter Shaw, the head of a crack undercover team of police officers who are so covert, many of their own colleagues don’t even know they are involved. Shaw is a deeply wounded character, having lost his wife and much of his former life as he struggles to bring down bad guys through complex undercover assignments. His team includes a recently married cop (Hardwick) who struggles with personal relationships he has developed while undercover; a shoot-from-the-hip officer (Marshall-Green) whose activities make fellow team members wonder if he has gone over to the bad side; and a green patrol cop brought in because of her excellent skill in lying and a shady past (Aycox).

“The Line” comes from Warner Horizon Television, and has some pretty powerful producers behind it. Besides Bruckheimier, there are Jonathan Littman (the “CSI” series, ”Cold Case”), Danny Cannon (the ”CSI” series, ”Eleventh Hour”) and Doug Jung (”Big Love”) serving as executive producers. KristieAnne Reed (”Eleventh Hour”) is co-executive producer.

Posted at 9 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 8

Jada Pinkett Smith in "Time Heals." TNT photo

TNT’s original series have covered cops (“The Closer,” “Saving Grace”), lawyers (“Raising the Bar”), ad men (the upcoming “Trust Me”) and even con men (“Leverage”).

Sooner or later, the network had to offer up a medical drama. “Time Heals” has been greenlit for 10 episodes. It stars Jada Pinkett Smith as Christina Hawthorne, the director of nursing at Richmond Trinity Hospital in Charlotte, N.C. Pinkett Smith also serves as a producer for the series.

Here’s TNT’s description of the series:

Whether treating the homeless woman in front of the hospital like a human being or trying to talk a suicidal cancer patient off the ledge, Christina must challenge hospital administrators, heartless doctors, apathetic colleagues and a system that sometimes forgets it’s there to serve the sick. Recently widowed and the mother of a smart, willful teenager, Christina juggles her career with her equally important role as a single parent. Between the two, she barely has time for herself and has difficulty keeping things together. But she knows she has to and can’t give up on anyone. That’s what her passion requires; it’s what it takes to be a hero.

The series co-stars David Julian Hirsh, Laura Kenley, Christina Moore and Suleka Mathew.

“Time Heals” and another new series, “The Line,” are set to premiere sometime this year according to TNT.

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 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7

DAMAGES
9 p.m. Wednesday, FX
Tune in or out? out of four.

Patty Hewes better watch her back.

The manipulative lawyer played with unsentimental brilliance by Emmy winner Glenn Close won her case in the first season of FX’s legal thriller “Damages.” But she made a lot of enemies along the way, and they’re rallying against her in Season 2.

She faces the most dangerous foe in her protégée, Ellen Parsons (Rose Byrne), who is working with the FBI to take down her boss after Patty tried to have her killed in Season 1.

“I want to destroy her,” Ellen tells her FBI handlers.

She’s not alone. Patty’s old nemesis, former billionaire Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson), still is lurking, as is Patty’s guilt over the death of Frobisher’s lawyer—a suicide Patty caused by blackmailing him.

Patty’s haunted by her past in other ways, too. An old, um, “friend” comes to her for help. Scientist Daniel Purcell seems to have run afoul of an energy conglomerate.

I say seems because, as Patty herself says, “everyone is looking to play an angle.” And in “Damages,” the angles are sharp—and deadly.

Purcell, played by Close’s “The Big Chill” co-star William Hurt (right), is most definitely more than Patty’s newest client. They have a past, we learn, that may mean he’s gunning for her as well.

Watching Close and Hurt work together is a thrill. They’re incredible actors, as is Marcia Gay Harden, who digs into her role as Patty’s new competition, lawyer Claire Maddox. Rounding out the new cast is Timothy Olyphant as Ellen’s grief counseling acquaintance Wes Krulik, who’s working an angle of his own.

There’s no simple character in “Damages,” which means there’s no simple plot line either. But I’m happy to report that although the writers still are playing with timelines, they don’t jump back and forth nearly as much as they did in Season 1.

I have to be honest, though, the show demands your concentration and dedication. This isn’t “The Mentalist” or some “Law & Order” series. But unraveling the twisted mysteries surrounding Patty Hewes is what makes watching “Damages” so deliciously fun.

Posted at 7 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 6

"Scrubs" moves to ABC, begins Tuesday.

John Lehr bags more laughs in "10 Items or Less."

Not cool, guys, not cool! FX photo

NIP/TUCK
9 p.m. Tuesday, FX
Tune in or out? out of four.

I have a problem with knives—as in knives that are repeatedly jabbed into a man’s back. I get dizzy when I see that kind of stuff; then I pass out. So I had some real trouble watching the extremely bloody, violent opening minutes of the second half of “Nip/Tuck’s” strike-delayed fifth season.

My reaction is sort of indicative of my "Nip/Tuck" experience over the past few seasons. I delight in some of the show's wackiness, but then am stunned by its mean-spirited, cruel turns. It's why I've stopped being a regular viewer.

If you remember way back in February, Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh, above right)—a newly minted TV star on the soap “Hearts & Scalpels”—was dealing with all kinds of crazy. His former agent, Colleen Rose (Sharon Gless, right), killed his new rep by stuffing him with Teddy Bear filling; his daughter Annie and his partner Christian Troy (Julian McMahon, above left) were involved in a paparazzi-caused traffic accident. Just as Sean was preparing to work on Annie’s face, Colleen stabs him from behind.

The opening minutes revisit every gory detail of that scene, showing creepy Colleen sneaking into McNamara/Troy, attacking Sean and then dragging him off to an empty room.

Once Colleen is dispatched, the episode gets more serious, for while anyway.

Confined to a wheelchair, Sean refuses to do any surgeries and takes a job teaching med students. Christian, meanwhile, is diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer.

Both men are wallowing in self-pity, so naturally, they bring home a couple of gals from a bar and present an extended (wheelchair) sex scene that’s even graphic by this series’ standards.

So overall, not much has changed on one of TV’s most over-the-top series. If only I found that enjoyable.

Posted at 9:45 a.m. Friday, Jan. 2

Don’t bother complaining to Tom Cavanagh about how silly it is that his new series, “Trust Me,” is set in Chicago but wasn’t filmed here.

He understands that Chicagoans might feel offended.

“You want to talk offended? Don't get me started,” he told me during a recent phone conversation. “Half of my family is from there and I love it there … [Co-star Eric] McCormack and I want to film there.”

In the series, debuting Jan. 26 on TNT, Cavanagh and McCormack play best buds who work at the same Chicago advertising agency. Cavanagh hopes the show is a success, he said, so the production can film the second season on location in the Windy City.

“We have our fingers crossed that it happens sooner rather than later,” he said, adding that he’d love to shoot in the summer so he could watch the Cubs.

“I'm a huge baseball fan, massive baseball fan,” he said. “The Cubs were heartbreaking this year. With that pitching staff, how did they not win the NL? Don't even get me started. Wait, you did get me started …”

Posted at 9:35 a.m. Friday, Jan. 2

Gemma Arterton and Eddie Redmayne star in the new PBS production of "Tess of the D'Urbervilles." PBS photo

TESS OF THE D’URBERVILLES
8 p.m. Sunday and Jan. 11, PBS
Tune in or out? out of four.

Laura Linney debuts as the new host of Masterpiece Classic by introducing the Thomas Hardy classic—that really annoys me. Don’t get me wrong, this new production is beautifully done, with Gemma Arterton (yes, that was her in “Quantum of Solace”) as the ill-fated Tess and Eddie Redmayne as her love, Angel. But why, why, why do these old romances always tease us with a sassy, strong female lead who is neither sassy enough to say what she wants nor strong enough to fight for it? Argh!

Posted at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 2

GAME SHOW IN MY HEAD
7 p.m. Saturday, CBS
Tune in or out? out of four.

CBS has fallen under the spell of producer Ashton Kutcher (right), who does not appear in this new game show. The home of everything “CSI” is airing his lame hidden-camera game show that has the feel of his old MTV hit, “Punk’d.” Host Joe Rogan orders contestants via an earpiece to generally act foolish in public for cash prizes. The first episode’s player must get a perfect stranger to “marry” her. Sorry Ashton, I will not be watching this show ’til death do we part. In fact, not even 'til it's third episode.

THE NANNY EXPRESS
8 p.m. Saturday, Hallmark
Tune in or out? out of four.

“Las Vegas” alum Vanessa Marcil (left) plays Supergirl—I mean a good Samaritan who can do anything. She’s going to school to be a teacher, tutors low-income kids at her church, takes care of her ailing father and has time to work as a nanny!. After initial trouble, she wins over a widower’s scheming kids—and the widower! Oops, did I spoil that for you? Not really, since everything thing in the made-for-TV movie is predictable, and predictably weepy.

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.”

SHOW FILMED IN CHICAGO

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.

That success probably doesn't surprise series star Timothy Hutton, who told me during an interview last week at the Four Seasons that the Robin Hood themed show, although fictional, resonates during our current tough economic times.

"People are really struggling," he said.

Posted at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7

HOUSE OF SADDAM
8 p.m. Sunday and Dec. 14, HBO
out of 4.

As I watched the opening night of HBO's four-hour mini about Saddam Hussein's rise and fall, something struck me: He was the Tony Soprano of Iraq, at least as his story is told here.

We see his meddlesome mother constantly disapproving of him, pushing him and even scolding him—all while he's Iraq's dictator. We also see an evil dictator dispatch anyone who gets in his way—including his best friend and his wife's brother.

The story begins as Hussein takes control of the government in 1979, the most chilling part of the mini-series. As Hussein, Yigal Naor does his best work here, portraying the tyrant as an energetic bully mad for power. Shohreh Aghdashloo, as his first wife, Sajida, does excellent work here as well. I've really never seen Aghdashloo in a bad performance, now that I think about it.

But back to the man under the microscope. Hussein's time running from American soldiers gives Naor another chance to shine. He's broken and anything but invincible in these scenes.

In between the bookends, Hussein is exactly what we'd expect—a thug. Certainly a scary thug, but pretty much only that note. The story gets too convoluted in this period as well, jumping back and forth and glossing too quickly over certain events. It can be difficult to follow.

For at least half of its four hours, however, "House of Saddam" makes recent history an entertaining drama.

Posted at 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5

ABC’s “Boston Legal” brings down its final gavel at 9 p.m. Monday. In a two-hour farewell, titled “Made in China” and “Last Call,” David E. Kelley’s wacky lawyer series has Alan (James Spader) petitioning the Supreme Court in hopes of securing Denny’s (William Shatner) access to an experimental medicine that could slow his Alzheimer’s, and Denny, it appears in the video here, is in a heap of trouble for a randy indiscretion. Will he be locked up or will he get to light up a final cigar with Alan?

Here’s the episode description from ABC: "Crane Poole & Schmidt are in dire financial straits—possibly forcing the firm to find a buyer. And Alan Shore heads to the Supreme Court to persuade them to let Denny Crane have access to a non-FDA approved drug that could slow down his rapidly progressing Alzheimer's. Meanwhile, Shirley Schmidt and Carl Sack plan their wedding, and Denny poses an important question to Alan."

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.

The scene above from the "Leverage" series premiere was shot at 55 W. Monroe St.

TNT's new caper series, "Leverage," focuses on a band of merry con artists, but Chicago steals the show's season premiere.

"Chicago practically plays the sixth character," co-star Gina Bellman told me this week at the Four Seasons. "It plays such a fantastic backdrop."

Charlie Hunnam's Jax has an ax to grind on the season finale of "Sons of Anarchy." FX photo

Charlie Hunnam gets picky when choosing roles, which may explain the years-long gaps in his resume. But the British actor has found a character he loves--and will get to do for at least another year.

In the FX series "Sons of Anarchy," which wraps up a successful freshman season at 9 p.m. Wednesday, Hunnam plays Jackson "Jax" Teller, a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang in the fictional town of Charming, Calif. Jax, the son of the gang's founder and step-son of its shady current boss, is conflicted about the group's violent, outlaw ways.

"This character's wonderful for me," Hunnam told me at the start of this season. "It's everything I could have ever wanted. The range of stuff that I get to do and the complexity of this guy's journey is really delightful to get to play."

Posted at 9 p.m. Monday, Oct. 20

As you can see in the clip above, Katie Holmes can sing. She may not be Beyonce, but she does wonderful work Tuesday performing the Duke Ellington jazz classic "Hit Me With a Hot Note" on "Eli Stone." Holmes is currently starring on Broadway in the play "All My Sons." After Tuesday, the casting directors down the street at "Chicago" might be seeking her out for a run in the musical.

On "Eli," Holmes plays Grace, a lawyer who shows up first in one of Eli's visions--the one where she does her sultry singing. Shoe's not nearly as smooth in reality, it turns out. Grace is an accident-prone klutz who is leaving San Franscico for Africa in a matter of days.

I won't tell you any more, except to say the Holmes is sweet and radiant as Grace, and her character's departure Tuesday leave sthe door open for Holmes to return to the show. That is a hot note.

"Eli Stone" airs at 9 p.m. Tuesday on ABC.

KATIE HOLMES ISN'T THE ONLY BIG NAME BACK ON TV THIS FALL. CLICK ME

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

CRASH
9 p.m. Friday, Starz

The scoop: Inspired by the 2004 Oscar-winning movie of the same name, the 13-episode “Crash” series tells the stories of the (eventually) intersecting lives of L.A. residents.

Among the many characters you’ll meet are has-been record producer Ben Cendars (Dennis Hopper) and his new chauffeur Anthony Adams (Jocko Sims); Christine (Clare Carey) and Peter Emory (D.B. Sweeney), a couple living beyond their means; Guatemalan immigrant Cesar Uman (Luis Chávez); and LAPD cop Bebe Arcel (Arlene Tur) and her pig of a partner Kenny Battaglia (Ross McCall), who stalks a woman (Moran Atias) he arrested after side-swiping her car.

What works: In this cast of extremely unlikable characters, only Eddie Choi (Brian Tee) made me feel anything but outrage. The former Koreatown gang member is trying to go straight as an emergency medical technician, but he gets sucked back into his former life and ends up the target of crooked police detective Axel Finet (Nick Tarabay).

What doesn’t: Hopper—bless his heart—gives his bosses exactly what they want: a crazy, over-the-top performance. But the writers give Hopper the silliest lines onscreen. We meet the wacked-out music mogul during a limo trip in which he’s lecturing a certain part of his anatomy, asking “where did all those veins come from?” and calling it “a private road map to death.” It’s the most grievous example of the show’s overwritten, pretentious dialogue.

Tune in or out? out of four. Though the movie couldn’t have been more obvious in playing its race cards, “Crash” the series, at least in its opener, is more reserved. But it also doesn’t go anywhere, leaving me to wonder why I should spend more time with these unpleasant people.

Posted at 10 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15

Jason O’Mara walks through 1973 New York in “Life on Mars.” ABC PHOTO

Here’s the “Life on Mars” playlist for Thursday’s episode, just in case you want to get into the groove before it airs at 9 p.m. on ABC.

ABC provided the list of oldies we’ll hear in the new show’s second episode, called “The Real Adventures of the Unreal Sam Tyler”:

Posted at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 13

ELI STONE
9 p.m. Tuesday, ABC

The scoop: After experiencing visions—possibly from God—San Francisco lawyer Eli Stone (Jonny Lee Miller) became a prophet of sorts, championing little guys against bigger baddies in his cases. The Season 1 cliffhanger had doctors removing a brain aneurysm that may have caused Eli’s visions and odd behavior. Is he “cured,” and if so, is that a good thing?

What works: Here’s hoping Eli keeps having visions (I know the answer, but I hate to spoil the fun for you), because, unlike in last year’s TV disaster “Viva Laughlin!,” the visions’ musical numbers—from the George Michael solos to the big production numbers—make perfect sense within the story being told.

What doesn’t: For a show about spirituality, I don’t find “Eli Stone” all that preachy. But at times it can get self-righteous and melodramatic.

Tune in or out? out of 4. Three reasons to watch: The devine Loretta Devine belts out “Dancing in the Streets” to open the new season (above), Sigourney Weaver guest stars this week, and she’s followed by Katie Holmes in Week 2. Not to mention that Miller and his TV brother (Matt Letscher) couldn’t be more charming.

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 9:45 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 9

TV REMAKES: OLD VS. NEW

WATCH the original British mini-series "Eleventh Hour" all day Sunday, Oct. 12, beginning at noon on BBC America.

ELEVENTH HOUR
9 p.m. Thursdays, CBS

The scoop: Brilliant but eccentirc biophysicist Jacob Hood (Rufus Sewell, above right) works with FBI agent/bodyguard Rachel Young (Marley Shelton, left) to crack science-related cases.

What works: This slick remake of a British mini-series has everything other CBS cop dramas do—attractive stars, well-paced plots and high production values. The premiere’s crime deals with botched human cloning, which despite being done already on Fox’s “Fringe,” is creepy and compelling.

Sewell takes what could have been another smart-but-cranky character beyond the House prototype; he lends Hood a wry humor.

What doesn’t: By the second episode, “Eleventh Hour” seems to have forgotten it’s weird science premise. The plot is a fairly standard murder mystery even if the murder weapon is unusual.

Tune in or out? out of 4. Without the science-based mysteries, “Eleventh Hour” is just another well-done but unremarkable crime procedural.

Posted at 9:45 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 9

TV REMAKES: OLD VS. NEW

LIFE ON MARS
9 p.m. Thursdays, ABC

The scoop: After getting hit by a car, NYPD Det. Sam Tyler (Jason O’Mara) wakes up and is dumbfounded to learn he’s living in 1973. Is he insane, in a coma or has he actually traveled in time?

He’s even more confused that he’s still (or previously?) a detective working with a tough boss (Harvey Keitel), other detectives (Michael Imperioli, Jonathan Murphy) and a woman officer (Gretchen Mol) who they call “No Nuts.”

What works: This remake of the hit British series has fun with the 1970s, including low-tech police work (no CSI-style crime solving!), clothing, music, sexism and New York culture. O’Mara’s hot in his leather blazer, and all the cast members seem to inhabit their roles. Really, you can’t beat Keitel as a mean, egotistical, king-of-his-domain cop.

What doesn’t: Some viewers might be turned off by the sci-fi elements, including the time-shift and the confusing “messages” Tyler seems to receive through his TV and the voices in his head.

Tune in or out? out of 4. I’ve seen just the first episode, but this remake seems to have traveled well from Manchester, England, to New York. Besides, David Bowie’s song, “Life on Mars,” is an all-time favorite.

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 8:35 a.m. Friday, Oct. 3

Laurie Metcalf and Jeff Hephner star in "Easy Money."

EASY MONEY
8 p.m. Sunday CW

The scoop: Like the rest of his family, Morgan Buffkin (Jeff Hephner) helps run Prestige Payday Loans, a high-interest loan company that was started by his tough-as-nails mom Bobette (Laurie Metcalf). He wants to escape the life.

What works: Hephner and especially Steppenwolf alum Metcalf own the show. They share a great scene when Bobette defends the business to Morgan, saying, “We HELP people. People that the banks don’t think are good enough, they come to us in their hours of need and we help them.” That’s followed by her telling the family not to appear too wealthy.

What doesn’t: There’s not a lot of action in the opener, but there’s a great conflict set up when the Buffkin’s business competitors, the Mamayo brothers, come to town.

Tune in or out? out of 4. The show skirts the line between comedy and drama well, with characters that will keep viewers interested.

Posted at 8:20 a.m. Friday, Oct. 3

Read my review of "Easy Money."

It’s been a few years since Laurie Metcalf has been a regular on a TV show, but the “Roseanne” alum was ready to try it again.

“I love getting back to it,” Metcalf told me during a recent phone interview. “I’ll always love the theater first and foremost ... But this is a wonderful group and I’m really flattered they asked me to be a part of this.”

“This” is the CW dramedy “Easy Money,” which debuts at 8 p.m. Sunday. Metcalf plays Bobette Buffkin, a scrappy, no-nonsense woman who runs a payday loan company.

The dark comedy centers on Bobette’s middle child, Morgan (Jeff Hephner), who has never quite fit into the family despite the fact that he’s obviously Bobette’s favorite. Morgan questions the family business, and he’s searching for why he feels so unsettled

Bobette is Metcalf’s first role on series TV since the sitcom “Roseanne” ended in 1997. The founding member of Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company has appeared on stage, in films and on TV—most memorably in her four-episode role as Caroline Bigsby on “Desperate Housewives.”

According to Metcalf, Bobette is a “self-made woman who dotes on her family”—and she’s based on a real person named Bobette. The real Bobette is a cousin to the show’s creators, husband-and-wife team Diane Frolov and Andy Schneider. She runs a payday loan company in Las Vegas, Metcalf said, “has red hair and [laughs], she dresses great.”

“She is a great consultant,” Metcalf said.

Metcalf and I talked about her Chicago days at Steppenwolf, working on “Roseanne” and her new series, “Easy Money.” Keep reading below.

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 8 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1

Coach Taylor gets a new boss—his wife Tami (Connie Britton, above).

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
8 p.m. Wednesday DirecTV 101 Network

The scoop: Thank you, DirecTV and NBC, for agreeing to allow DirecTV to air (commercial-free!) the 13-episode Season 3 of “FNL” before it goes to NBC in February. That deal saved a stellar series from cancellation.

As the new season begins, Coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) has a new boss—his wife, Tami (Connie Britton). The former Dillon High School counselor is facing a financial crunch and the disapproving attitude of the vice principal.

As for the kids, Smash Williams (Gaius Charles, right with Chandler) and Jason Street (Scott Porter) will appear in only a few episodes before they move on with their lives.

Coach is facing a doubters that he can keep the Panthers winning without his star, Smash, who has graduated. He’s also dealing with pressure from the father of a new recruit—a freshman quarterback who transferred to Dillon from Dallas.

As far as the couples go, Bad boy Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) and Bible-thumper Lyla Garrity (Minka Kelly) are messing around behind closed doors. But Lyla doesn’t want anyone to know; as Tim’s brother tells him, "You're a rebound from Jesus." Matt Saracen (Evanston native Zach Gilford, below left) and Julie Taylor (Aimee Teegarden, below right), who broke up last season, reignite their romance.

What works: After jumping the shark last season with the soapy story that dropped bad girl Tyra Collette (Adrienne Palicki) and nerdy Landry Clarke (Jesse Plemons)—who have broken up, by the way—in a murder investigation, “FNL” goes back to its roots this season. And that means football. Yes, football—and how practically everyone in this small, depressed town of Dillon, Texas, looks forward to Friday nights.

Top-notch acting really makes this show. For example, in one scene late in the premiere, Tami leans over to Coach during a booster party and tells him that she’s decided to take money allocated for football and use it for academics. Chandler, as Coach, doesn’t say a word, but his expression of confusion, then dismay, sets up a central conflict between the two this season—football vs. academics.

What doesn’t: Now that the Panthers and the people of Dillon are front and center, everything is working well.

Tune in or out? The writing is honest and the acting so true (and tremendous) you feel you could be watching a documentary. Hopefully this Hail Mary strategy works, and we’ll be following a fourth year of Dillon football next fall.

Posted at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30

DIRTY SEXY MONEY
9 p.m. Wednesday ABC

The scoop: The wealthy Darling family sinks its fangs even deeper into once-honorable lawyer Nick George (Peter Krause).

What works: Youngest Darling brother Jeremy (Seth Gabel) remains my favorite character. In the opener, he uses his boyish charm to nearly seduce Nick’s wife and then is seduced himself by newcomer Lucy Liu. Jeremy wears a look that says, “I can’t help it; these things just happen to me.”

What doesn’t: Darling daddy Tripp (Donald Sutherland) gives Nick a yacht for his birthday—and for keeping mum about a death involving politician son Patrick (Billy Baldwin). Really? Would Nick walk away from a corpse like that? He used to be such a nice guy.

Tune in or out? out of 4. The show’s writers are embracing the fact that “Dirty Sexy Money” is an overheated soap along the lines of “Dallas” and “Dynasty.” But I don’t have to play along. I found several scenes in the first episode to be mean-spirited, and other just plain boring.

Posted at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30

PRIVATE PRACTICE
8 p.m. Wednesday ABC

The scoop: Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) and her doctor buds run the Oceanside Wellness Group in Santa Monica, Calif., where they spend a lot of time flirting—and not practicing medicine.

What works: Finally, the tough Addison we remember from “Grey’s Anatomy” emerges. She argues with her partners, yells at her patients’ parents and puts business before friendship—all in the premiere. To the credit of show creator Shonda Rhimes, she does focus more on the medical issues with several hospital scenes.

What doesn’t: Oceanside is in financial trouble as the season begins; apparently Naomi Bennett (Audra McDonald) is a better doctor than businesswoman. Maybe her ex hubby and business partner, Sam (Taye Diggs), can save the practice. Yawn. That’s just one example of the boring subplots.

Tune in or out? out of 4. Besides Addison, I couldn’t care less about any of these doctors. Addison, move back to Seattle!

Posted at 10 a.m. Monday, Sept. 29

LIFE

9 p.m. Monday and Friday NBC

The scoop: Quirky Det. Charlie Crews (Damian Lewis) served 12 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Now he’s back on the force, partnered with Det. Dani Reese (Sarah Shahi) and searching for the people in the department who set him up.

What works: “Life” focuses on characters and relationships, and the one between Crews and Reese is wonderful. I love watching as Reese rolls her eyes whenever Crews, always munching on a piece of fruit, goes into one of his Zen-man monologues. Lewis and Shahi have great chemistry together.

And don’t worry about having to follow a “Lost”-like maze with the who-framed-Charlie mystery. It’s important, but serves only as a backdrop to each week’s cases.

What doesn’t: “Life” is paces a little slowly, but I can live with it.

Tune in or out? out of 4. It’s refreshing to watch a cop show that doesn’t rely on “CSI”-style storytelling. Crews and Reese use their brains and intuition to get at the truth. “Life” breathes some life into the played-out cop genre.

Posted at 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28

Pamela Adlon, Evan Handler, Natascha McElhone, David Duchovny, Madeleine Martin and Madeline Zima of "Californication."

CALIFORNICATION

9 p.m. Sunday Showtime

The scoop: Last season, horndog author Hank Moody (David Duchovny) and his ex, Karen (Natascha McElhone) fled her wedding to another man and ran off together with their daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin), in tow. Can they live happily ever after?

What works: Hank’s trying to be a better man: He gets a vasectomy to prove his love to Karen and turns down several offers to cheat on her. It’s fun to watch Duchovny play those scenes, showing how Hank really wants to be bad, but has to be good.

Bad behavior does eventually land Hank in trouble with Karen, Becca and the law. Duchovny, McElhone and especially Martin make you believe every word they speak, and every action—no matter how outrageous—they take.

What doesn’t: Another excellent performance comes from Evan Handler as Hank’s agent, Charlie. A subplot involving Charlie’s introduction into the porn business doesn’t work as well.

Tune in or out? out of 4. Knowing about Duchovny’s real-life battle with sexual addiction makes me respect his touchy performance all the more. Hank’s self-destructive behavior is his only way to deal with his troubled soul.

Posted at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28

DEXTER
8 p.m. Sunday Showtime

The scoop: Despite close call after close call, police blood splatter analyst and vigilante killer Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) kept his dark secret last season without breaking his dad’s code of killing only murderers.

Season 3 opens by showing a “normal” Dexter, who has evolved from the intimacy-fearing introvert of Season 1 to a man who jokes with his co-workers and sister, Deb (Jennifer Carpenter), and enjoys sex with his girlfriend Rita (Julie Benz), and a new friendship.

What works: A botched execution and accidental murder leads Dexter to that unlikely friendship with ADA Miguel Prado (Jimmy Smits). Smits was a wise addition this season, making Prado an intense, scary guy who hones in on Dexter right away. Smits and Hall share a creepy face-off in the season premiere that had me convinced Dexter had been found out.

What doesn’t: Season 3 isn’t as sharply plotted as Season 2, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t working. I’m still on the fence about Dexter giving up the code, but it could just be another way of making Dex more human—an evolution that will keep this show from repeating itself.

Tune in or out? “Why is he trying so hard to be my friend,” Dexter asks himself about Prado. That’s the most intriguing question for me so far this season. I wonder if Prado and Dex have more in common than we’re first led to believe. Is Prado also a killer? That would be another great twist in Dexter’s winding tale.

Posted at 3:10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 26

Hiro (Masi Oka) has a new nemesis in speed demon Daphne (Brea Grant).

Masi Oka is riding high, but not just because his NBC series, “Heroes,” is back on TV after nine months away.

Oka, a longtime comic book fan, said Friday during a conference call that he’s thrilled to be part of the “Heroes” universe—including the comic books. His time-traveling character, Hiro Nakamura, now has been drawn by famous comic book artists such as Alex Ross, Tim Sale and Mike Turner.

“I got excited when I had a character drawn of me at a bar mitzvah,” Oka said, laughing. “Now to have these amazing, legendary artists draw you. Who would of thought? As a comics book reader, it’s something that you’re very proud of and grateful for.”

Oka said he now has Hiro action figures and Bobbleheads, too, but offered one more Hiro product he’d like to see: “What more can a guy ask for? Maybe Underoos.”

Oka may not get the Underoos, but in Monday’s season premiere, Hiro got a new nemesis: the super speedy—and sassy—Daphne Millbrook, played by Brea Grant.

Daphne swooped in and stole part of a secret formula that Hiro’s father had hidden. The complete formula has world-ending ramifications, so Hiro and Ando (James Kyson Lee) track her to get it back. Daphne will bug Hiro throughout the season, Oka said.

“Daphne is kind of like the quintessential nemesis for Hiro,” he told reporters. “As Batman gets his Joker, Hiro gets Daphne.”

Oka then suggested a more apt description of the pair since nerdy Hiro is involved:

“I see it more like a Wiley E. Coyote and a Road Runner scenario, except she says more than ‘Meep, meep,’” he said. “You will see Hiro fall on his face a lot.”

Oka didn’t offer any spoilers for the season, but discussed the return of Hiro’s former nemesis, Adam Monroe, his love interests, and Mary Poppins. It’s all one click away—after the preview to Monday's episode below.

Posted at 6:45 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 25

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
8 p.m. Sunday ABC

The scoop: Now that the show has jumped five years into the future, Lynette’s (Felicity Huffman) sons are becoming delinquents. Bree (Marcia Cross) is a successful caterer and cookbook author who steals recipes from Katherine (Dana Delaney). Edie (Nicollette Sheridan) moves back to Wiseria Lane with a hubby. Divorced Susan (Teri Hatcher) is having an affair with her house painter (Gale Harold). Gabby (Eva Longoria Parker) has two overweight kids and a blind hubby (Ricardo Chavira).

What works: Neal McDonough gives the new—and I say blander—“Housewives” at least a little mystery as Edie’s scary new husband. The wives still can throw some zingers too.

What doesn’t: The time-jump does simplify the story-telling, as creator Marc Cherry hoped, but the wives’ domestic issues are kind of boring. This act is getting old.

Tune in or out: out of 4. I’m not too desperate to go back to Wisteria Lane.

Posted at 7:45 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 25

BROOKE SMITH FIRED FROM "GREY'S ANATOMY."

GREY'S ANATOMY
8 p.m. Thursday ABC

The scoop: Everyone at Seattle Grace has a fit when the hospital is downgraded to the 12th best teaching hospital, but only Chief Webber (James Pickens Jr.) isn’t too preoccupied with his love life to do something about it. He immediately makes a plan to get tougher on his staff, who care more about their personal lives than professional ones. Yes, the drama trumps the trauma at Seattle Grace: Erica (Brooke Smith) and Callie (Sara Ramirez) are avoiding each other after last season’s make-out session; Lexie (Chyler Leigh) has fallen for George (T.R. Knight); Alex (Justin Chambers) can’t stand it that Izzy (Katherine Heigl) thinks he’s nice; Derek (Patrick Dempsey) has to have the work breakup with nurse Rose (Lauren Stamile).

What works: The trauma—three ball-gown clad women (Bernadette Peters, Kathy Baker and Mariette Hartley) are admitted after a car crash. Sexy Army surgeon Owen Hunter (Kevin McKidd) assists the women on the way to Grace and ends up hanging around the hospital to bewitch Cristina (Sandra Oh). They’re scenes are the best part of the opener.

What doesn’t: out of 4. How completely annoying can Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) become? And Mer-Der? I am so over their on-again off-again, I’m scared, I’m ready, blah, blah, blah. Do yourself a favor, mute the TV during Pompeo’s voiceovers. Cristina says it best tonight: "Shut up, shut up, shut up. I have to listen to you when you get together. I have to listen to you when your break up. You and Derek will not work!"

Tune in or out? This might be the season I turn to “ER” for Angela Bassett over all this melodrama.

Posted at 8:15 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24

Psychic similarities: "Psych," "The Mentalist" and "Lie to Me."

It never takes long to recycle an idea in Hollywood, does it?

Hot on the heels of the series premiere of CBS’ “The Mentalist,” Fox has announced a series commitment to “Lie to Me,” which is set to premiere at midseason. They can both thank USA’s “Psych” for a bit of inspiration.

In “Psych,” James Roday stars as Shawn Spencer, a super observant guy who, pretending to be psychic, works with the police to solve crimes. His partner in their consulting business, called Psych, is Burton “Gus” Guster, played by Dulé Hill.

“Psych” is a silly, entertaining comedy that in an interview earlier this year Roday called “good, clean summer fun.” His character, Shawn, uses his keen observation to find clues at crimes scenes that others overlook. He and Gus are like a modern Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but funnier.

Enter “The Mentalist,” CBS’ interesting new drama that riffs off of “Psych.” Simon Baker stars as Patrick Jane, another incredibly observant guy who used to make a living pretending to be psychic on TV. Now he helps the California Bureau of Investigation solves crimes.

Patrick Jane uses his skills to read people as opposed to crime scenes (although he notices things at crime scenes too). He has an uncanny ability to notice peoples tells, or ticks, and then get them to open up to him. The CBS notes on the show say he can see into other people’s hearts (metaphorically), but not into his own.

Now we have “Lie to Me,” which takes Patrick Jane’s skills to another level. Tim Roth stars as Dr. Cal Lightman, who can “read clues embedded in the human face, body and voice to expose the truth behind the lies in criminal investigations,” according to Fox.

“When you scratch your chin, wring your hands, wrinkle your nose or swallow too much, Dr. Cal Lightman knows you’re lying. He doesn’t just think so—he knows so,” a Fox release reads.

Like Shawn Spencer, Dr. Cal runs his own company called The Lightman Group, which consults with the FBI, police, law firms, corporations and private individuals to help find the truth.

Hit sounds like he employs a whole team of Shawn Spencers and Patrick Janes, or as Fox says, “experts in the field of behavioral evaluation: