HBO Archives

CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

BORED TO DEATH
8:30 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

With "True Blood" buried for winter, HBO resurrects Larry David. The curmudgeon feels his girlfriend (Vivica A. Fox) is sucking all his energy, so he plots to win back his wife (Cheryl Hines). The big news is the "Seinfeld" reunion, but you'll have to wait until episode 3. As far as "Bored" goes ... it's no "Curb." But I found Jason Schwartzman's writer-turned-private-eye oddly endearing, especially when he tokes up with friends both refined (Ted Danson) and schlubby (Zach Galifianakis). Enjoy the video sneaks below.

EPITAFIOS
9 p.m. Friday, HBO Latino
10 p.m. Tuesday, HBO2
Tune in or out? out of four.

I have to hunt down the first season of this excellent thriller that, in its second season, has detectives Renzo Marquez (Julio Chavez) and Marina Segal (Cecilia Roth) tracking a serial killer who copies 20-year-old murders and then creates photographic portraits of them--suitable for framing! They discover that a man being treated in a mental hospital may have escaped the killer. He's too traumatized to answer their questions, but he suffers fits that cause him to predict each victim.

As I watched this gruesome, tense and beautifully filmed (in Buenos Aries) series, the same sick feeling of foreboding crept into my stomach that I felt while watching the film "Seven" for the first time. Thankfully, the graphic images did not make me pass out this time. "Epitafios," "Epitaph" in English, is shown in Spanish with English subtitles, but believe me, it's worth the extra effort.

Maryann (a wonderful Michelle Forbes) calls forth all her weirdness for the season finale of "True Blood."

TRUE BLOOD
8 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? Oh I'll be there y'all. U.S. Open finale be damned.

HBO is giving few hints about the Season 2 finale of its hair-raising hit, but one thing's for sure: Blood will flow. In "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'," the menacing Maryann throws her big wedding/sacrifice ceremony/orgy/hootenanny, luring Sookie into being her maid of honor. Who will get her horns is just the first question I have. Will it be Eggs or Tara? Will Sookie flash that spark that sends the maenad to hell for good? Will vamp Bill throw Sam into Maryann's bonfire? Can Jason and Andy save Bon Temps? What is vamp Eric up to with Queen Sophie-Ann? I'm on the edge of my coffin.

What do you think will happen on the Season 2 finale of "True Blood"? Leave me your answers in the comments. Mild spoiler alert: You can check out the teaser trailer and season finale photos I've posted after this pic of Alexander Skarsgard as Eric that I've added, um, I think you can guess why.

It's only fitting that Ryan Kwanten (left) and Alexander Skarsgard of "True Blood" are Scream 2009  nominees. Who doesn't squeal when they are onscreen? HBO photo

"Star Trek" boldly took the most nominations for Spike TV's Scream 2009 awards.

J.J. Abrams popular reboot of the sci fi movie franchise earned 17 nominations, followed by 13 each for "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and "Watchmen."

HBO's "True Blood" earned nine nods, the most for a TV show. Unlike other awards, Scream pits TV and movies against each other.

Season 2 of "True Blood" is quickly drying up, but we're in for more thrills before it does. STOP READING IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW ANYTHING ELSE

Dan Savage wants more sex on HBO.

I wasn't sure how the latest "True Blood" episode would fare against last week's Godric episode, but Alan Ball and company outdid themselves. (Meet actor Alan Hyde, who plays Godric, at Access Hollywood.)

Despite HBO short-changing us with a 45-minute episode instead of the usual 60-minute one, I'm thrilled with Sunday's "New World in My View." If you haven't watched it, get back into that coffin. Spoilers ahead.

"True Blood" fans in the RedEye newsroom couldn't stop talking about last Sunday's shocking and sad Godric story. So what will we be talking about this coming Monday? Looks like Jason Stackhouse. The reformed vamp-hater is out for blood--make that claws. Jason will be hunting down that clawed creature terrorizing Bon Temps. Little does he know it's Mary-Anne. Watch out Jason!

HBO this week renewed its fangtastic hit, "True Blood," for a third season, making Alan Ball look something like a fortune teller.

Ball, the show's creator and executive producer, talked during last week's San Diego Comic-Con like the third season was a sure bet, saying he was looking forward to bringing more characters from author Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse novels to the small screen. (Harris announced that she signed a contract for three more books, with the first out in 2010 and the third in 2014.)

"I'm looking forward to seeing werewolves for the first time," he told an enthusiastic crowd. "I'm definitely interested in getting into the world of Russell Edgington and the Mississippi vampires, and I'm really excited about the character of Debbie Pelt."

Kevin Dillon (left), Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly and Jerry Ferrara of "Entourage." HBO photo

ENTOURAGE
9:30 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

"Entourage" could sure use some Viagra.

HUNG
9 p.m. Sunday, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

The new season of HBO's "Entourage" begins July 12, and you could earn a walk-on role.

Chicago club owner Billy Dec recently played an agent on the show, which stars his friend and Evanston native Jeremy Piven as Ari Gold. The two are partnering up this Saturday for their annual fundraiser for the Piven Theater Workshop. Part of the night's festivities is a silent auction with all kinds of prizes, including those walk-on roles. The event is from 6-10 p.m. at Dec's Rockit Bar & Grill, 22 W. Hubbard St.

TRUE BLOOD
8 p.m. Sundays, HBO
Tune in or out? out of four.

The bloodsuckers are back with even more gore. Creator Alan Ball keeps upping the freak show aspect, with a poison-clawed, half bull/half man creature, Michelle Forbes' orgy-loving Maryann, a bratty teen vampire and a twisty central mystery about a missing vampire.

"True Blood" returns June 14 for its second season on HBO. The network has released this peek at the new season. Enjoy.

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

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

Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie (photo) will be getting some help from a few big comic talents on the upcoming second season of HBO's "Flight of the Conchords."

"My Boys" star and Chicago favorite Jim Gaffigan and Kristen Wiig of "Saturday Night Live," will appear in episodes of the comedy, which returns with 10 new episodes at 9 p.m. Jan. 18. Seymour Cassel and Greg Proops also guest star in Season 2.

I couldn't find details on what characters these guests would play--except Proops, who appears in the Jan. 18 episode as a rep for Femident toothpaste (read below for more), but I read at TV Guide that Bret and Jemaine will film a biopic about the band that borrows plot points from "Star Wars." Hilarity, I've no doubt, will ensue.

Here's more on the season from HBO:

Transplanted New Zealanders Jemaine and Bret live on New York City's Lower East Side and split their time between seeking venues where they can perform and awkwardly courting women. Sometimes finding it easier to express themselves with music, they're apt to break into song at a moment's notice.

Over the course of the new season, Bret and Jemaine resort to a variety of unconventional strategies in an attempt to jump-start their lives and career, including: taking desperate measures to pay the bills, starting up a gang, and even dating an Australian--a taboo in New Zealand. Their efforts rarely yield dividends, but do spawn new tunes about life, love and the pursuit of an elusive music video.

Among the familiar faces rejoining Jemaine and Bret for the second season of FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS are: Murray (Rhys Darby), who still works at the bare-bones New Zealand consulate and serves as their inept manager; Mel (Kristen Schaal), their married, obsessive fan, and Doug (David Costabile), her long-suffering husband; their friend Dave (Arj Barker), who works at a pawn shop and lives with his parents; and Eugene (Eugene Mirman), their meddling landlord.

Episode #13: "A Good Opportunity" (Already showing on Funny Or Die)
Debut: SUNDAY, JAN. 18
After rejecting Murray for spending too much time with another band, Bret and Jemaine have success managing themselves and land a deal to record an ad jingle. Dave shares his "double-down" deal strategy. Written by James Bobin & Jemaine Clement & Bret McKenzie; directed by James Bobin.

Episode #14: "The New Cup"
Debut: SUNDAY, JAN. 25
Bret and Jemaine's fortunes unravel after Bret buys a new tea cup. With emergency band funds unavailable, Jemaine takes desperate measures in hopes of supplementing their income. Written by Duncan Sarkies; directed by James Bobin.