The Daily Beast: "Summer 2011 TV Preview: 15 Reasons to Watch TV This Summer"

We’re starting our summer at a bit of a disadvantage: there is no new season of Mad Men to look forward to this year, as we’ll have to wait until March 2012 to find out what happens to Don Draper and the other staffers at Draper Cooper Sterling Pryce. It’s enough to put a damper on anyone’s television-viewing this summer, but there are still some bright points amid a series of repeats and burn-offs like NBC’s Love Bites. (Seriously, avoid that one like you would the plague.)

Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, entitled "Summer 2011 TV Preview: 15 Reasons to Watch TV This Summer," in which I round up what’s new and noteworthy on the telly in the coming months, from True Blood and Torchwood: Miracle Day to British period drama The Hour and the return of Damages and Breaking Bad. All in all, 15 reasons to come in from the warmth of the summer evening and sit down on the couch for a few hours.

What are you most excited about heading to the small screen this summer? Which intrigues you the most? And which will make you change the channel instantly? Head to the comments section to share, discuss, and debate.

Channel Surfing: Details on Kanakaredes' Exit from CSI, Alphas Lands Two, More on McPherson, HIMYM, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello talks to CSI: NY executive producers Pam Veasey and Zachary Reiter about the departure of Melina Kanakaredes from the crime procedural and how they'll handle Stella's exit, given that Kanakaredes will not be reprising her role this fall. "We’re giving her a noble exit,” said Reiter. "We chose not to go the route of killing her off or having her go missing. We felt that would weigh too heavily on the team." However, the action will instead pick up a few months after the events of the season finale and reveal that Stella moved to New Orleans. "She left to run a lab there," Veasey told Ausiello. "And she picked that city because it’s the city of Katrina, the city of BP oil, the city where people are looking for someone to lend a hand. She’ll essentially be Mac in New Orleans. We wanted to do something that was respectful and made a lot of sense." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

More casting on Syfy's 90-minute drama pilot Alphas: Malika Yoba (Defying Gravity) and Laura Mennell (Watchmen) have signed on to star in the pilot, which is written by Zak Penn and Michael Karnow and directed by Jack Bender. Yoba and Mennell will star opposite David Strathairn and will play members of the Alpha team, a group of people "who have extraordinary mental and physical abilities" and who "investigate difficult-to-solve cases that the CIA and FBI have either passed over or were unable to solve." (Variety)

The Hollywood Reporter's Kim Masters is reporting that ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson resigned from the network amid a formal sexual harassment probe into alleged misconduct involving several women--both executives and on-air talent--and an incident at a corporate retreat. Said investigation had been going on for the three weeks leading up to his announcement that he would be stepping down from the company. "Upon Steve McPherson returning to work from his vacation on Monday, he made a voluntary decision to resign and ABC accepted his resignation," said McPherson's lawyer, Tom Hoberman, in a statement. "It is not uncommon for high level executives to be the subject of gossip and innuendo. That would include rumors of internal situations which can easily be misinterpreted or misrepresented. Seems like it goes with the territory, and there is nothing further to discuss." According to Masters, ABC "pointedly did not deny allegations of inappropriate conduct." The situation remains in flux and ABC has yet to officially name a replacement for McPherson, though it's widely believed that ABC Family's Paul Lee has scored the seat. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan talks to How I Met Your Mother creators/executive producers Carter Bays and Craig Thomas about what went wrong with the fifth season of the CBS sitcom. "We set out to say, 'What if every episode, you hit the reset button at the end of the episode?'" said Bays. "...We had fun doing that, but I feel like that's not the show we wanted to do." Thomas concurred. "A certain kind of fan of the show felt like last season was less emotionally interesting, less interesting in the larger arc of 'Who's the mother?' but also less interesting in the sense of moving forward in these characters' lives," he told Ryan. "I feel like we earned fans by exploring a lot of different rites of passage in people's lives, and last year I feel like we did a lot less of it." Ryan also gets Bays and Thomas to discuss details of Season Six of Mother, including the return of Rachel Bilson, the handling of Barney and his quest to find his real father, Marshall and Lily's attempts to have a baby, the third installment of the Robin Sparkles saga, and the fact that "by the end of the season, everyone's lives will change dramatically." (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, meanwhile, has a few further details on the return of Rachel Bilson's Cindy to How I Met Your Mother. "Bilson will appear in the show’s sixth season premiere this fall when Cindy shows up at MacLaren’s bar, the favored hangout of Mother‘s central quartet," writes Ausiello. Meanwhile, her return sets up some important storytelling. “The season premiere is going to be very much informed by her presence,” Carter Bays told Ausiello. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that USA has renewed procedural drama In Plain Sight for two additional seasons, the series' fourth and fifth installments. "The main cast, including Mary McCormack, Frederick Weller and Paul Ben-Victor, are all set to return to In Plain Sight, which will continue to film in New Mexico," writes Andreeva. (Deadline)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has a run down of just who will be on Glee this season, who won't be, and who may be. It's a long list, to say the least. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Paul Giamatti (John Adams) has been cast in an HBO telepic that will depict the two-week tour that Nikita Khruschchev took of the United States in 1959. Project, from Playtone, is based on Peter Carlson's nonfiction book "K Blows Top," and will be adapted by Paul Bernbaum. "Once in the States, Khrushchev famously blew up when he was informed that a planned trip to Disneyland had to be tabled because of security concerns," writes Variety's Cynthia Littleton. "(The book's title comes from New York Daily News headline about the Disneyland flap.)" (Variety)

BSkyB has signed an exclusive output deal with HBO, said to be in the arena of $234 million over the next five years. Under the terms of the deal, the satcaster retains exclusive rights to all new HBO series, with the first being Boardwalk Empire, current series, past series, and right of first refusal on UK co-productions. (Variety)

Elsewhere across the pond, Channel 4 has secured the UK rights to NBC's upcoming thriller The Event, which will launch in the UK in October. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Lost Alum Heads to SVU, David Strathairn Signs on to Alphas, Outlaw Nation Lands Its Cast, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that former Lost co-star Henry Ian Cusick has signed on for a multiple-episode story arc on NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where he will play Erik Weber, a graphic artist. Cusick is expected to appear in at least two episodes of the procedural drama and will cross paths with Mariska Hargitay's Detective Olivia Benson. "There might be some flirtation," executive producer Neal Baer told Keck. "Erik meets Olivia when he comes to someone's aid. And then we'll see how it goes. Olivia is devoted to her job and knows that comes first." (TV Guide Magazine)

It's official: Academy Award nominee David Strathairn will star in Syfy's 90-minute action pilot Alphas, according to a network press release. In the pilot, written by Zak Penn and Michael Karnow and directed by Jack Bender, Strathairn will play the "unconventional, eccentric Alphas team leader" Dr. Leigh Rosen. Here's what the press release had to say about his character: "Though he comes across as somewhat of an absent-minded professor at times, he is also a cunning and manipulative power-player willing to bend the rules in pursuit of his objectives and in support of his team." Production begins next month in Toronto. (via press release)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Luke Grimes (Brothers & Sisters) and Haley Bennett (Marley & Me) have been cast opposite Mary Steenburgen in FX's Nashville-set crime drama pilot Outlaw Country, which will be directed by Michael Dinner. Grimes will play Eli Larkin, described as "a half-cowboy, half-modern guy who tries to get out of the crime ridden life he has grown accustom to in order to help his siblings, however he finds out that it is much harder than he expected." Bennett will play Annabel Lee, described as "a gorgeous country singer who is living in the shadow of her overprotective mother (Steenburgen)." (Deadline)

SPOILER! Some Bones scoop for those of you deprived of the FOX procedural this summer, courtest of TVGuide.com's Mickey O'Connor and Adam Bryant. Asked about whether Booth and Brennan will be apart when Bones returns this fall, this is what the TVGuide.com editors had to say: "It's looking that way, particularly now that we know that Booth will meet his new love interest, a journalist, when she's embedded with his unit in Afghanistan. In a seemingly Grey's Anatomy-inspired Teddy-Owen-like twist, she'll follow Booth back to Washington, where they'll attempt to be together in the real world. And we all know how that goes. But don't blame Bones — she'll be nothing but supportive of the born-under-fire union." (TVGuide.com)

E! is getting into the dance business. The cabler has teamed up with Ryan Seacrest Productions to develop a pilot that will feature Lady Gaga choreographer Laurie Ann Gibson, along with a group of other choreographers and dancers, in Los Angeles. (Hollywood Reporter)

Torchwood fans, make sure you pick up a copy of the new Torchwood comic, which will make its debut at San Diego Comic-Con later this month. The first issue of the monthly will feature a story written by John Barrowman and will be available at the convention exclusively until it hits shelves on August 10th. (Digital Spy)

E1 has signed on to co-produce AMC drama pilot Hell on Wheels, which revolves around the "post-Civil War construction of the Transcontinental Railroad," with Endemol USA. Production on the pilot, written by Joe and Tony Gayton and directed by David Von Ancken, will begin in August in Alberta, Canada It's widely believed to be a lock for a series order. (Variety)

Recasting going on behind the scenes at NBC's upcoming comedy series Outsourced, where Aussie actress Pippa Black has stepped into the role of Tonya. Elsewhere, Maria Thayer has been upgraded to series regular on Cartoon Network's Eagleheart. (Hollywood Reporter)

Jane Kaczmarek (Raising the Bar) and Kim Dickens (Treme) have been cast in Lifetime telepic Reviving Ophelia, based on the nonfiction book by Mary Pipher, in which they'll play sisters who must help one another raise their teenage daughters. Project, written by Teena Booth and directed by Bobby Roth, will air later this year. (Variety)

Reveille is dipping its toes into the television animation business, signing a deal with Mechem Media to "create animated fare in the signature style of Hanna-Barbera." (Company is comprised of several former Hanna-Barbera executives.) First up is comedy The Gloomers, which will be pitched to networks in the next few weeks. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX's animated comedy The Cleveland Show is heading into syndication and has locked up deals at Turner's TBS and Adult Swim, where the series will launch in fall 2013. (Broadcasting & Cable)

20th Century Fox Television has signed a talent holding deal with Wilmer Valderrama, under which he will star in and executive produce a new series project for the studio, reports Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. (Deadline)

More changes afoot at ITV Studios, where Lee Bartlett and Remy Blumenthal are stepping down from their posts following a reorganization that will see former Channel 4 director Kevin Lygo assume oversight of the studio. (Variety)

Elsewhere, former Universal Networks International executive Jon Farrar has been hired by BBC Worldwide Channels as VP, programming for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Judy Greer Finds Mad Love, David Strathairn Circles Alphas, Gossip Girl, True Blood Twist, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Judy Greer (Miss/Guided) is heading to CBS. The actress--whose voice appeared this season on FX's animated comedy Archer--has signed on to star in CBS ensemble comedy Mad Love, which has been picked up for thirteen episodes and will launch in midseason. Greer replaces Lizzy Caplan, who had only signed on to appear as a guest star in the pilot, and will star opposite Sarah Chalke (who herself replaced Minka Kelly), Jason Biggs, and Tyler Labine (who replaced Dan Fogler). Project, from writer/executive producer Matt Tarses, revolves around a group of Manhattan friends looking for love. (Variety, Deadline)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that David Strathairn (Matadors) is in talks to topline Syfy's action-adventure pilot Alphas, which revolves around a team of people with extraordinary abilities. Strathairn would play the "the overseer/team leader/prescribing doctor and all around mother hen to the team: an eccentric, absent-minded professor at times, who is also a cunning and manipulative power-player willing to bend the rules in pursuit of his objectives." Ryan Cartwright (Mad Men), meanwhile, would play a team member with Asperger's Syndrome who is able to receive wireless transmissions. (Deadline)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Katie Cassidy (Melrose Place) has signed on to a multiple-episode story arc on the CW's Gossip Girl next season, where she will play "a student at Columbia and a love interest for fellow undergrad Nate (Chace Crawford)" who will cause trouble for the well-heeled set of the CW drama series. Her first appearance is slated to air during the fourth season premiere this fall. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

POTENTIAL SPOILER E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has an interview with Mariana Kleveno--who plays vampire Lorena on HBO's True Blood--about the disturbing final-act twist in last night's taut installment. "[That scene] was actually the most shocking thing that I've ever read in a television script," Kleveno told E! "My jaw dropped on the floor when I read it and thought, 'Oh my god, I actually have to do that?!" Kleveno also goes on to say that filming the pivotal scene was "kind of uncomfortable." [Editor: when I interviewed Stephen Moyer a few weeks back, we discussed the scene and he referred to it as "f---ing gnarly."] (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Remember those rumors circulating last week that the Beeb was considering resurrecting Philip Glenister's Gene Hunt character from Ashes to Ashes and Life on Mars? Looks like--thankfully--there is absolutely no truth to them whatsoever. Ashes co-creator Matthew Graham has denied the report, originally published by The Daily Mirror, stating in no uncertain terms that Gene's story was done. [Editor: Whew! As much as I love Gene and Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes, it had the perfect ending.] (Den of Geek)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that A.J. Cook will be returning to CBS' Criminal Minds this fall... at least for a "brief stint to tie up JJ's storyline." Additionally, Paget Brewster will also be returning for another season, having successfully concluded a contract renegotiation that will see her return in the fall for "a significant number of episodes," according to an unnamed Criminal Minds insider. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Lolita Davidovich and Kathleen Quinlan have joined the cast of of HBO telepic Cinema Verite, which revolves around the making of the landmark reality series An American Family. (Also cast: William Belli and Nick Eversman.) Elsewhere, Steve Hytner (Hung) has been cast in CMT's comedy pilot The Hard Life, where he will star opposite Matthew Lillard and Gillian Vigman, appearing in flashbacks to the 1970s. (Deadline)

SPOILER! TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck has some dirt on the Season Seven opener of FOX's House, which finds Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) taking Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) away for an "idyllic day." "Anywhere other than Princeton-Plainsboro Hospital is an easier place for them to be together in a relationship," House executive producer Katie Jacobs tells Keck. "That's where we start — 'What if we only have each other?' As their day goes on, Cuddy will learn that the locales they visit hold a secret significance... It would be impossible for Cuddy to spend every day as if her child and her professional life don't exist; a little easier for House, since he is somewhat of a child himself. But what's cool about Season 7 is that House is going to try to stay off drugs and have a meaningful relationship. We don't rush through this. It's taken six years to get there, so this is not a story that's going to be done in three episodes." (TV Guide Magazine)

Marvel Entertainment has created a television division and named scribe Jeph Loeb (Heroes) to head up the new sector. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Loeb will "oversee the translation of Marvel’s popular characters and stories to the television medium, in both live-action and animation formats" as well as "the development and distribution of live-action, animated and direct-to-DVD series." (Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision)

Peter Horton (Grey's Anatomy) will direct and executive produce FOX's upcoming con man drama Lonestar, signing a deal with 20th Century Fox Television and FOX that will also secured him a premium script commitment. He'll also direct a pilot for the studio and network next season. Horton will direct the first episode of Lonestar after the pilot episode, which was directed by Marc Webb. (Variety)

Former Dexter showrunner Clyde Phillips has signed a two-year overall deal with Lionsgate Television, under which he will develop programming for the studio. Anything that is ordered to pilot (or series) would be shot on the East Coast, where Phillips lives with his family. (Deadline)

Emily VanCamp (Brothers & Sisters) has been cast in CBS' upcoming Hallmark Hall of Fame telepic Let Them Shine, where she will play a novice teacher who makes a difference in the lives of several homeless students. Project is written by Camille Thomasson and directed by Jeff Bleckner. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Starz Developing US Underbelly, Tim Kring Talks Heroes' Movie Chances, Charice Heads to Glee, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Vulture's Josef Adalian is reporting that Starz is developing a US adaptation of Aussie crime series Underbelly, which has aired Stateside on DirecTV's Channel 101, following a deal to acquire the U.S. rights to the gritty crime drama, which some have likened to Australia's answer to The Sopranos... which Starz topper Chris Albrect himself oversaw when he headed up HBO. "Albrecht is clearly hoping Underbelly’s phenomenal success in Australia (its 2008 premiere drew more viewers there than any other non-sports broadcast, and the show won the country's equivalent of the Emmy for best drama) can be replicated here," writes Adalian. "Since the show is based on real events that took place in Australia starting in the 1970s, Starz can't simply film the original scripts using American actors. But the network is currently researching various American crime families that they can build effective story arcs around...just as long as the clans aren't from New York or New Jersey, which would invite calls of Sopranos copycatting." Should Starz be able to find the right setting and characters, a pilot script could be ready before next year and unnamed sources have indicated to Adalian that Albrecht would likely go straight to series rather than shoot a pilot. (Vulture)

Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice talks to Heroes creator Tim Kring about his new project--interactive content for Nokia that's "meant to inspire social change"--and about the future of the NBC superhero drama. "No decision has been made," said Kring about a potential Heroes movie. "But the Heroes brand is an extremely broad premise. It was a premise about ordinary people, an undisclosed number of people all over the world, who were waking up to these extraordinary abilities. Any number of stories could happen around that. We never posited a single ending or a single premise. It wasn’t about getting off of an island or stopping something from happening. We told stories in volumes that had a beginning, a middle, and an end. Those volumes could go on and on and on with many different characters. As a result, that Heroes universe is something that can be tapped into again in many ways. Certainly, a movie is a way to do that and clearly, there is an entire world and a number of platforms that this property could live in. Movies sometimes need a little distance from the television show." (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

It's official: Charice is heading to Glee. Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that the international pop star has signed a deal that will have her recur on the FOX musical-comedy, where she will play a foreign exchange student who quickly becomes a bitter rival to Lea Michele's Rachel. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

[Editor: meanwhile, E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos reports that there's no truth--as of yet, anyway--to those rumors that Justin Timberlake will be appearing on Glee.]

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva reports that Mary Steenburgen (Curb Your Enthusiasm) is the first casting attachment for FX drama pilot Outlaw Country, which is being described as "a crime thriller/family drama set against the backdrop of southern organized crime and Nashville royalty 'where music and love, hope and tragedy collide.'" She'll play a country music icon who attempts to protect her daughter Annabel. Project, from Fox Television Studios and FX Prods., is created by Josh Goldin and Rachel Abramowitz, who will executive produce with Art Linson and John Linson. (Deadline)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos is reporting that Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies) would like to reprise her role on FOX's Glee next season after appearing twice as April Rhodes. She's also aiming to land her own series next season as well. "I'm working on my album with Sony," Chenoweth told E! Online. "So I'll be doing a tour and going back to Glee a little bit and also doing my own TV show." No details were immediately available about her in-development project. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

FOX has lowered the age requirement on American Idol, allowing kids as young as 15 years old to audition for the musical competition series. "A lot of young, talented people are now seeking careers and representation before they turn 16," said FremantleMedia North America's Cecile Frot-Coutaz, executive producer of Idol. "Lowering the age limit allows us to tap into this talent pool." (Hollywood Reporter)

It's official: all five of NCIS's renegotiating actors--Sean Murray, Michael Weatherly, Rock Carroll, Pauley Perrette, and David McCallum--have signed new deals that will bring them back to the CBS crime procedural next season, following the successful conclusion of Murray's deal, a new multi-year contract that will keep him aboard NCIS. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Jane Krakowski has teased some details about the next season of NBC's 30 Rock, telling E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos, "Will Forte will be coming back as Jenna's shman." But he's not the only love interest slated to make a return appearance next season. "I do believe Matt Damon is going to come back," Krakowski told E! Online. "He is scheduled to make some return appearances if we can work them around his schedule and availability." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that The Amazing Race host Phil Keoghan will produce and host an unscripted series about the Velux 5 Oceans 2010-11 race, which "features skippers from all over the world sailing alone for 30,000 miles around the globe on high powered racing yachts and video recording their journeys." No US network is current attached to the project. (Deadline)

Syfy's drama pilot Alphas is set to shoot in Toronto at Cinespace Film Studios. Project, which revolves around a team of individuals with exceptional abilities who work as vigilantes, is written by Zak Penn and Michael Karnow and directed by Jack Bender. (Hollywood Reporter)

Elsewhere at Syfy, the cabler is giving fans of its Saturday night movies the chance to oversee each and every aspect of the production of one of its upcoming creature features, according to The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. "The network is launching a production site, B Movie Mogul, where fans can vote and pitch ideas for the film, from title, creatures, wardrobe, dialogue and character deaths to promotional taglines," writes Hibberd. "The resulting 'script' will be shot as a two-hour Syfy original movie to be released next year." (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC is said to be mulling the possibility of reinstating its current programming department, according to Variety's Michael Schneider. The division had been axed last year, when programming operations at ABC and ABC Studios were merged into a single unit reporting to Steve McPherson. "With a slew of new series on the fall docket -- not to mention aging staples that might need a little more attention -- the network began to reconsider," writes Schneider. "There's nothing firm in the works yet, and no exec has been identified for the gig. But the return to a current department would come after a similar decision by NBC. The Peacock recently reinstated its current department under exec VP Vernon Sanders. CBS and Fox have maintained current programming departments." (Variety)

Warner Bros. Television has signed a blind script deal with Michael Markowitz (Becker), who will team up with executive producers Tom Werner and Mike Clements. (Hollywood Reporter)

Endemol has come on board as the international distributor for TV Land's comedy series Hot in Cleveland and will be taking the series to market at MIPCOM this fall. (Deadline)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Glee Gets Third Season, Mystery of Eko-Less Lost Finale Solved, Smallville Creators Get Charlie's Angels

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

FOX has given a major vote of confidence to musical-comedy Glee, which it renewed for a third season... before the first season has even wrapped. News of the pickup was broken by Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice. "Everything about Glee – from the concept to the characters to the marketing – has been innovative and risky, but with [series creator] Ryan Murphy tapping into the zeitgeist, the risk has paid off with this truly remarkable series," said Kevin Reilly, FOX Entertainment President. "Glee has one of the most active, devoted fan bases I’ve ever seen, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to give Gleeks a third season of their favorite show." The upside for FOX and studio 20th Century Fox Television are obvious: "Not only does it help cut production costs over the long haul, it allows Murphy and his writers a chance to plan ahead (if not breathe a much-needed sigh of relief)," writes Rice. "Most important, it gives the studio a head start in taking the episodes out into the syndication marketplace." (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

Wondering why Mr. Eko wasn't in the Lost finale? E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has learned that Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje turned down an offer to appear in the series finale of Lost. "According to ABC and Lost insiders, Adewale was offered a hearty sum to do one scene in the last hurrah, but the actor wanted five times the amount that was offered," writes Dos Santos. "It didn't work out." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Dos Santos also answers questions from attendees at last night's E! Online Lost finale screening, including some heretofore unrevealed elements of Lost's mythology, such as the true name for the Man in Black. Watch the video to find out! (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

[Elsewhere, Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice reports that the Lost finale featured more than 45 minutes of commercial and promotional time, roughly 107 on-air spots.]

Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar have signed on to write the pilot script for ABC's Charlie's Angels pilot, which will be produced by Sony Pictures Television and is being eyed for a possible midseason launch. The duo replace Josh Friedman, who had originally been hired to develop the project, which will be executive produced by Drew Barrymore, Leonard Goldberg, and Nancy Juvonen. (Hollywood Reporter)

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan is reporting that British actress Emilia Clarke (Doctors) has stepped into the role of Daenerys on HBO's upcoming fantastic series Game of Thrones, replacing Tamzin Merchant, who left the project. Production will begin in July with reshoots scheduled for the pilot episode, which featured several actors who have since left the project, including Merchant and Jennifer Ehle. [Editor: I watched the original Game of Thrones pilot last week and was blown away. HBO has knocked it out of the park with this one.] (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

Lost director/executive producer Jack Bender has signed on to direct the 90-minute pilot for Syfy drama Alphas, written by Zak Penn and Michel Karnow. "We are very excited that Jack has chosen to be part of Alphas," said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President of Original Programming, Syfy and Co-Head of Content for Universal Cable Productions, in a statement. "His vision and expertise are perfectly suited to this project, and will truly elevate it." Here's how Syfy is positioning Alphas: "Alphas follows a team of ordinary citizens who possess extraordinary and unusual mental skills. Using physical feats and uniquely advanced mental abilities, this unlikely team takes the law into their own hands and uncovers what the CIA, FBI and Pentagon have not been able or willing to solve. These gifted individuals must balance their quirky personalities and disparate backgrounds with their not always visible powers as they work to solve crimes, stop the ticking time bomb and catch the enemy." (via press release)

SPOILER (if you haven't watched the Bones finale yet): Bones executive producer Stephen Nathan has promised "big changes" next season for the series in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "The start of the season will have Booth and Brennan meeting [12 months later] at the coffee cart, and the series will start again… though on very different footing," Nathan told Ausiello. "There will be big changes." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Rand Ravich's ABC drama pilot Edgar Floats, which stars Tom Cavanagh, Robert Patrick, and Alicia Witt, is still alive and has received a order for six additional scripts, which means that the project is still in contention for a midseason slot on ABC's schedule. [Editor: having watched the pilot over the weekend, I can say that this is very good news indeed. Edgar Floats was a fantastic script and the best pilot I've screened so far this season.] (Deadline)

Paula Abdul is heading to CBS. According to The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd, Abdul is set to sign on to CBS' upcoming dance competition series Got to Dance, where she will serve as "lead judge, executive producer, creative partner, mentor and coach" on the series, which is produced by ShineReveille and based on the British competition series of the same name. (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC has signed a three-year deal which will see the Miss America Pageant head to the Alphabet. (Variety)

MTV has promoted Lauren Dolgen to SVP of MTV series development, West Coast, where she will report to Liz Gateley. (Deadline)

Stay tuned.