Channel Surfing: Amy Ryan Nabs In Treatment Role, Jessalyn Gilsig Talks Glee, Sanaa Lathan Spies Tilda, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Amy Ryan (The Office, The Wire) has landed a role on Season Three of HBO's psychiatric drama In Treatment, where she will play the new therapist for Gabriel Byrne's Paul. That role was formerly supplied by Dianne Wiest's Gina, who was Paul's mentor/psychotherapist for the first two seasons. (Wiest has departed the series.) [Editor: it's about high time that Ryan had a regular gig on a series. She's been a favorite since her turn on The Wire as Beadie, so it's only fitting that she returns to HBO for In Treatnment.] (Deadline)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has an interview with Glee's Jessalyn Gilsig, who plays Will's scheming ex-wife Terri. So will Terri be returning for Season Two of Glee? And just what was up with her potentially inappropriate interest in Finn (Cory Monteith)? While Gilsig admits that she hasn't yet received her official pickup from FOX for next season, she did discuss what happened with Finn in this week's episode ("Funk"). "What happened was completely by accident," Gilsig told E! Online about Terri's relationship with Finn. "She sees in Finn so much of what she saw in Will when she first met him because he's the same age as Will was. It's her way of remembering happier times—when she used to be kind to Will. And she realizes, here's a chance to be supportive of this kid." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Sanaa Lathan (Nip/Tuck) is the latest actor to board HBO's comedy pilot Tilda, which stars Diane Keaton, Jason Patric, and Ellen Page, according to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. Lathan will play Sasha Litt, described as "a mysterious new head of operations that RMG head Andrew Brown (Jason Patric) brings in to work at the studio." Production on the pilot, written by Cynthia Mort and directed by Bill Condon, is slated to get underway soon in Los Angeles. (Deadline)

ABC won't be coming to the rescue of cancelled CBS comedy series The New Adventures of Old Christine after talks broke down between ABC and studio Warner Bros. Television. "The network had showed strong interest in picking up Old Christine for the past three years," writes Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. "But when the show finally became available this year, a deal proved impossible to make as ABC was said to be unwilling to pay the high license fee needed to keep the veteran comedy series going." Which means that the Old Christine episode that aired May 12th will in fact serve as the series finale. (Deadline)

SPOILER! Leonard Nimoy has hinted that he might be returning to FOX's Fringe, despite the fact that his character, William Bell, appeared to have died in the season finale. "Do I think William Bell is really dead?" said Nimoy in a video on the official website. "This is science fiction. I have died in science fiction many times and somehow magically or scientifically come back. Given that he has disintegrated, what happens in the future remains to be seen." [Editor: his conjecture would also cast doubts upon Nimoy's "retirement" from acting as well.] (via Digital Spy)

What, was the title Conveyor Belt of Doom already taken? Chris Jericho will serve as host of ABC's "extreme game show" Downfall, set to air launch June 22nd. Series, which has been ordered for six episodes, will feature "contestants try to answer questions while on the roof of a Los Angeles high-rise. Meanwhile, 'the largest conveyor belt ever seen on TV' will send potential winnings (cash and prizes), the player's personal possessions and even friends and family over the side of the building." (Hollywood Reporter)

NBC Universal has signed a two-year overall deal with writer Lisa Zwerling (FlashForward), under which she will join the staff of NBC's upcoming drama series The Event as a consulting producer and develop new projects for Universal Media Studios. "Lisa is a breath of fresh air, so smart and passionate," said NBC Entertainment/Universal Media Studios drama exec VP Laura Lancaster told Variety. "We're impressed with her creative range and feel so fortunate she's decided to make UMS her home." (Variety)

"Sword of omens, give me sight beyond sight!" Cartoon Network has ordered a new animated series of ThunderCats (based on the much beloved 1980s animated series) from Warner Bros. Animation. "The update will combine swords and science with high-stakes battles as good and evil clash for the Stones of Power," writes The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. News comes after Cartoon Network gave a series order to animated superhero project Green Lantern. (Hollywood Reporter)

BBC Worldwide America has hired former Nickelodeon executive Herb Scannell has the new president of U.S. operations, where he will oversee digital channel BBC America as well as BBC Worldwide America's US-based studio and production entity. "I would assume (BBC America) has more original shows launching than any other channel in cable TV," Scannell told Variety. "That's just by nature, given the number of shows coming from the BBC that haven't aired here in the States. I do have an interest in supplementing that with made-in-America shows that kind of have the three major attributes that make a BBC show: That they're smart, innovative and irreverent. Those are the key building blocks to think about programming wise and in branding." (Variety)

After nearly 40 years, the axe has fallen on Roy Clarke's long-running British comedy series Last Of The Summer Wine, which will end its run after more than 30 seasons this year, BBC One confirmed. "Last Of The Summer Wine has been part of BBC One for nearly 40 years," said Jay Hunt, Controller, BBC One, in a statement. "This wonderful final series is a fitting farewell to these much loved characters and I am delighted some of the channel's other heritage brands will be helping to say goodbye in style." (BBC)

Frances Berwick has been promoted to president of Bravo, filling a position that has been empty since Lauren Zalaznick was promoted to president of NBC Universal Women & Lifestyle Entertainment Networks in 2008. [Editor: congrats, Frances!] (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Chuck Renewed, ABC Keeps V But Not FlashForward, NBC's Law & Order Conundrum, Lost, and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Good news for Chuck fans: Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Chuck has been renewed for a fourth season of thirteen episodes, though NBC declined to comment on the report. While I had hoped for a full-season order, any Chuck is better than no Chuck, right? (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Good news as well for fans of the Visitors: ABC has reportedly given a thirteen-episode renewal to freshman sci-fi drama V. "V was likely a no-brainer, as ABC wants to bring back at least one frosh drama, and the alien thriller is showing signs of life," writes Variety's Michael Schneider. "Its fellow frosh sci-fi drama, FlashForward, is not." (Variety)

Yep, it's not looking good for FlashForward, which Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting has already been cancelled, along with Better Off Ted, Scrubs, and Romantically Challenged. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

After a day of back-and-forth about the fate of Law & Order, NBC is reportedly in talks to renew the legal procedural for a record-breaking 21st season. "The network has long intended to bring back the Dick Wolf-produced drama for one final season, allowing the show to top Gunsmoke as the longest-running drama in TV history," writes The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. "But NBC's testy relationship with Wolf came to head Thursday when the producer rejected the network's offer to continue the show at a reduced license fee. Wolf's office told producers and some cast members that the drama had been canceled, triggering online reports that the show was finished." Apparently, those reports were premature, though it's possible that the eleventh hour talks could result in no deal, at which time Wolf could shop the series to cablers. TNT, meanwhile, denied reports that they are in talks with Wolf. (Hollywood Reporter)

The New York Times' Lorne Manley has a brand-new Q&A with Lost showrunner/executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse just ahead of the series finale of Lost, airing Sunday, May 23rd. "If there’s one word that we keep coming back to, it’s redemption," said Lindelof. "It is that idea of everybody has something to be redeemed for and the idea that that redemption doesn’t necessarily come from anywhere else other than internally. But in order to redeem yourself, you can only do it through a community. So the redemption theme started to kind of connect into 'live together, die alone,' which is that these people were all lone wolves who were complete strangers on an aircraft, even the ones who were flying together like Sun and Jin. Then let’s bring them together and through their experiences together allow themselves to be redeemed. When the show is firing on all pistons, that’s the kind of storytelling that we’re doing. I think we’ve always said that the characters of Lost are deeply flawed, but when you look at their flashback stories, they’re all victims. Kate was a victim before she killed her stepfather. Sawyer’s parents killed themselves as he was hiding under the bed. Jack’s dad was a drunk who berated him as a child. Sayid was manipulated by the American government into torturing somebody else. John Locke had his kidney stolen. This idea of saying this bad thing happened to me and I’m a victim and it created some bad behavior and now I’m going to take responsibility for that and allow myself to be redeemed by community with other people, that seems to be the theme that we keep coming back to." (The New York Times)

ABC has picked up six new series for the 2010-11 season: comedies Mr. Sunshine, Happy Endings, and Better Together and dramas My Generation (formerly known as Generation Y), The Whole Truth, and Detroit 187. Variety's Michael Schneider is also reporting that Wright vs. Wrong could still be in contention. (Variety)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that NBC drama pilot Rockford Files is now dead, despite it being a major frontrunner just a few weeks ago. [Editor: I can't say that I'm surprised as I wasn't all that chuffed with the script or the casting of Dermot Mulroney.] (Deadline)

CBS has ordered a pilot for Chuck Lorre's comedy Mike & Molly and is said to be high on Bleep My Dad Says, Team Spitz, Livin' On a Prayer, Hawaii Five-O, Defenders, Chaos, and the untitled John Wells/Hannah Shakespeare medical drama. Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is also reporting that CBS is in talks to renew Ghost Whisperer and Old Christine but that, if talks go South, ABC would step in to pick them up should CBS pass. (Deadline)

Over at NBC, it's looking certain that Kindreds, Garza, and The Cape will all receive series orders before Sunday afternoon rolls around. Sadly, Rex Is Not Your Lawyer is said to be dead at NBC. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed, Deadline)

Sony Pictures Television has signed a new two-year overall deal with Damages creators Todd A. Kessler, Daniel Zelman, and Glenn Kessler. There is still no word on the fate of Damages, which wrapped its third season last month. "We originally planned out five or six seasons between Patty (Close) and Ellen (Rose Byrne), about the relationship between mentor and protege," Kessler told Variety. (Variety)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that producers of 20th Century Fox Television-produced drama pilot Breakout Kings, which FOX passed on after it renewed Lie to Me and Human Target, are shopping the project and have been talking to USA, A&E, and Spike. (Deadline)

Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice is reporting that TNT has picked up legal dramedy Franklin and Bash, which was originally developed at sister cabler TBS. Series, from creators Kevin Falls and Bill Chais, stars Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Breckin Meyer. (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

TBS, meanwhile, has ordered eight episodes of hour-long period comedy Glory Daze, which stars Kelly Blatz, Callard Harris, Matt Bush, Drew Seeley, Hartley Sawyer, Julianna Guill, and Tim Meadows. Series revolves around a group of college friends in 1980s Wisconsin. Glory Daze was created by Walt Becker and Michael LeSieur; it will likely premiere later this year. (Deadline, Variety)

Universal Media Studios has signed a two-year production deal with Todd Holland and Karey Burke's new shingle, which remains as yet unnamed. "Together we really make one perfect creative person," Holland told Variety. "She has all the skills I don't have: all the network experience, the general awareness of the writer community and the memory of so much TV development. I'm always thinking like a director -- 'What are we doing right now?'" (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: FOX Sends "Dollhouse" to the Attic, ABC Axes "Hank," Syfy Blasts into "Outer Space," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

It's official: FOX has canceled Joss Whedon's metaphysical drama series Dollhouse. The series, which is currently in production on this season's eleventh episode, will finish production and the network is currently expected to air all thirteen installments of the low-rated Friday night drama beginning December 4th. Whedon himself posted on Whedonesque about the cancellation news (which didn't come as a surprise to anyone tracking the ratings) and said, ""I don't have a lot to say. I'm extremely proud of the people I've worked with: my star, my staff, my cast, my crew. I feel the show is getting better pretty much every week, and I think you'll agree in the coming months. I'm grateful that we got to put it on, and then come back and put it on again. I'm off to pursue internet ventures/binge drinking," he wrote. "Possibly that relaxation thing I've read so much about. By the time the last episode airs, you'll know what my next project is. But for now there's a lot of work still to be done, and disappointment to bear. Thank you all for your support, your patience, your excellent adverts. See you again." (Hollywood Reporter, Whedonesque)

ABC has canceled struggling Kelsey Grammer comedy series Hank and has yanked it off of the schedule, effective immediately. The network will instead use the Wednesdays at 8 pm timeslot to air a mix of comedy specials and holiday specials. There are five unaired episodes of the Warner Bros. Television-produced Hank on the shelves and it's not clear whether any of these installments will air. News comes after the network opted not to pick up supernatural drama Eastwick for its back nine, while the rest of ABC's Wednesday lineup--Modern Family, The Middle, and Cougar Town--have all been picked up for full seasons. (Variety)

Syfy has ordered five half-hour episodes of hybrid animated comedy Outer Space Astronauts. Series, from executive producers Russell Barret, David O. Russell, and Scott Puckett, will follow "eight military misfits who journey to the far reaches of the galaxy on board the O.S.S. Oklahoma" in a style that will blend both live-action as well as 2D and 3D animation techniques. It's slated to launch on December 8th. "Syfy fans have never seen animation quite like this before," Syfy EVP of original content Mark Stern told the Hollywood Reporter. "Out of the basement and mind of show creator, Russell Barrett, he's delivered a funny and fresh take on the future of underground and homegrown animation today." (Hollywood Reporter)

Martha Plimpton, Lucas Neff, and Olesya Rulin have been cast in FOX single-camera comedy pilot Keep Hope Alive, from writer/executive producer Greg Garcia. Project, from 20th Century Fox Television, follows Jimmy, a 25-year-old man (Neff) who is forced to raise his infant child with the help of his quirky family after the mother, with whom he had a one-night stand, ends up on death row. Plimpton will play Jimmy's no-nonsense mother. Michael Fresco is attached to direct. (Hollywood Reporter)

Author Ray Bradbury has signed a deal with indie producers White Oak Films to develop The Bradbury Chronicles, a six-hour miniseries based on six of his short stories. No network is currently attached to the project, which will be executive produced by Bradbury, John Dayton, Merrill Capps, Todd Klick, Cory Travalena, and Dale Olson, with Bradbury himself adapting his own work. (Variety)

Scott Cohen (Gilmore Girls) and Stephanie Childers (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip) have been cast in ABC Family's untitled Michael Jacobs single-camera comedy pilot, where Cohen will play an unemployed architect who "begins to mentor his underdog middle daughter, while his veterinarian wife (Childers) shares a closer bond with their Type-A older daughter." Elsewhere at ABC Family, Troian Bellisario and Ian Harding will star opposite Lucy Hale in drama pilot Pretty Little Liars. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX has given a series order to Mark Burnett-produced game show Our Little Genius, in which child geniuses, ranging from six to twelve years old, are given the chance to put their knowledge to the test and earn cash prizes. "In television, we often showcase kids who are incredible singers, actors or dancers, so it's high time we give the spotlight to kids with incredible brains," said Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company, in a statement. "The kids on this show are ridiculously smart, and with its unique appeal to both parents and children alike, I think Our Little Genius is one of Mark Burnett's most compelling creations yet." (via press release)

Warner Bros. Television has signed a new three-year overall deal with Old Christine creator Kari Lizer, under which she will develop projects for the studio as well as remain on board Old Christine as executive producer, should the series be picked up by CBS for a sixth season. (Hollywood Reporter)

NBC has confirmed its plans for its musical competition series The Sing-Off and will strip the series across a single week beginning Monday, December 14th. Series, from Tenth Planet Prods., Outlaw Entertainment, and Sony Pictures Television, will launch with a two-hour installment and air double-length episodes on Tuesday, December 15th and Wednesday, December 16th before wrapping up with a two-hour finale on Monday, December 21st. It will take a breather on Thursday, December 17th, when NBC airs a two-hour primetime Saturday Night Live Christmas special. (Variety)

BBC Two has acquired UK rights to Showtime's dark comedy series Nurse Jackie, which it plans to launch early next year. (Variety)

Elsewhere at the British terrestrial network, Mad Men's Vincent Kartheiser will star opposite Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz), Emma Pierson (Little Dorrit), and Jerry Hall (Calendar Girls) in a BBC Two adaptation of Martin Amis' novel Money, a "comedic tale of excess, greed and flawed ambition set at the beginnings of Eighties capitalism." Production begins this month on the two one-hour installments, written by Tom Butterworth and Chris Hurford and directed by Jeremy Lovering. (BBC)

Broadcast's Robin Parker takes a look at the new production models emerging as American and British comedy writers join forces, with several Atlantic-crossing series such as David Cross' The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret and Matt LeBlanc-led Episodes becoming a reality. (Broadcast)

CurrentTV pinkslipped 80 full-time staffers yesterday in the company's Los Angeles, London, New York, and San Francisco offices as the cabler moves from a shortform content strand to a more traditional television network model, with its schedule likely to be filled mostly by acquisitions. (Hollywood Reporter)

TruTV has ordered reality series NFL Full Contact, which will offers viewers a behind-the-scenes-look into the inner workings of the football league and focus on key personalities within the sport. Series, from executive producers Steve Sabol and Anthony Horn, will launch on February 8th. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Parenthood" Pushed to Midseason, Michelle Forbes Talks "True Blood," Two More Move to Wisteria Lane, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Following an announcement that actress Maura Tierney would require an eight-week medical evaluation for an undisclosed condition, NBC has pushed the start of its drama Parenthood, which was slated to debut on September 23rd, to midseason. The Peacock will instead push up the launch of its midseason medical drama Mercy to the fall, although it is still unclear whether Mercy will inherit Parenthood's Wednesdays at 8 pm timeslot. The production shutdown on Parenthood, meanwhile, will give writers additional time to complete scripts. (Hollywood Reporter)

UPDATE: "In an effort to guard my privacy, it seems that the wording of NBC's press release has unfortunately caused some confusion and undue alarm about my health," said Maura Tierney in an official statement. "I have discovered a tumor in my breast which requires surgery. I will not know either my exact diagnosis or course of treatment until that surgery is performed. My doctors have all assured me this is a very treatable condition. I'm very optimistic as to the outcome and want to thank everyone who has sent positive thoughts and support. I look forward to going back to work soon." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TVGuide.com talks with True Blood's Michelle Forbes about Maryann, the shaking, the pig, and Maryann's interest in Tara. Of the latter, Forbes said, "Tara is just the one of the moment, the conduit into this town. Before her, it was Eggs. Before Eggs, it was someone else. After Tara, it will be someone else. The goal is much larger. Tara is just the most vulnerable and the most susceptible right now." As for the vibrations, Forbes says they "are very integral to who she is. She thrives off the energy of the people around her. When they are in a place of ecstasy, that feeds her. Her appetite is fed off the appetite of others." Hmmm... (TVGuide.com)

Jeffrey Nordling (24) and Beau Mirchoff (The Grudge 3) have been cast in Season Six of ABC's Desperate Housewives as series regulars. Nordling will play a landscape designer who relocates from New York to Wisteria Lane with his wife (Drea de Matteo) and their "tightly wound, sexy and intense son (Mirchoff)." (Hollywood Reporter)

Showtime is said to be developing drama series Revelation, from Dirty Sexy Money creator Craig Wright and executive producer David Janollari. Project, from CBS TV Studios, follows the lives of an "unconventional minister who moves to a Texas church with his two teens after his wife suddenly dies." (Variety)

Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) has joined the cast of CBS' The New Adventures of Old Christine in a recurring role. He'll play a therapist and a potential love interest for Julia Louis-Dreyfus' Christine Campbell. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sci Fi UK has picked up first run rights to Syfy's newest drama series Warehouse 13, securing both standard definition and HD rights to the series from NBC Universal International Television Distribution. The channel plans to launch the series this autumn. "There was a tremendous buzz ahead of its launch in the US and the first night ratings are testament to what a fantastic show it is," said NBCU Global Network's head of channels. "The special effects and exciting plot twists make it a real gem for our autumn schedule."(Broadcast)

Not unsurprisingly, ShineReveille has acquired worldwide distribution rights to NBC's documentary series The Wanted, which features terrorism experts attempting to track down terrorism suspects around the world. ShineReveille intents to shop the series to outlets around the globe. (Variety)

The New York Times' Bill Carter takes a look at the ratings success that is HBO's True Blood, which has come at a time when the pay cabler desperately needed a hit series following the end of such network-defining series such as The Sopranos and Sex and the City. (New York Times)

TNT has moved its reality series Wedding Day once more, after slotting it in a Tuesday evening timeslot for its series premiere and then shifting it to Thursdays. Wedding Day will now air Saturday mornings at 9 am ET/PT. In other scheduling news, Bravo has announced that it will air yet another Real Housewives special on Thursday, July 23rd, this time for The Real Housewives of Atlanta featuring "lost footage," that will lead into the season finale of The Fashion Show and will air a week ahead of the second season premiere of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. (Futon Critic)

PBS will begin stripping its new reinvention of classic kids' series The Electric Company across weekdays on September 7th. It had previously aired the series in a weekly format, so far airing sixteen of the thirty-five installments it shot in 2008. (Variety)

Lastly, a look at the trailer for ABC's drama acquisition Defying Gravity, courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed:



Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Jared Harris Suits Up for Season Three of "Mad Men," ABC Offers "Christine" a Fallback, FOX Renews "Fringe," NBC Infront, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Jared Harris (Fringe's David Robert Jones) has been cast in a ten-episode story arc on Season Three of AMC's period drama Mad Men, which is expected to launch in August. Harris will play Lane Pryce, the financial officer of Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency, in the series, which stars Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, January Jones, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, and "guest star" John Slattery. (Hollywood Reporter)

Should CBS opt not to renew comedy The New Adventures of Old Christine for a fifth season, ABC is willing to give the Warner Bros. Television-produced series, which stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, a bailout, guaranteeing it a full 22-episode season on ABC. Move marks the second time ABC has organized a deal like this on behalf of Old Christine (network head Steve McPherson is said to be a huge fan), but it's thought rather likely that CBS will renew it in the end. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX has officially renewed sci-fi drama series Fringe, from Warner Bros. Television, for a second season. (Televisionary)

NBC unveiled some of its plans for the 2009-10 season to advertisers yesterday, which include new programs such as Parenthood, "event" series Day One, Mercy, Trauma, and comedies 100 Questions and Community. Still no official word, however, about the fate of Chuck, My Name is Earl, Medium, or Law & Order, though the Peacock will make further announcements and share its primetime schedule on May 19th. (Televisionary)

... And NBC also shared the fact that it had canceled crime drama Life and would not be bringing it back for a third season. (Televisionary)

SCI FI Wire talks to Fringe co-star Jasika Nicole, who plays Agent Astrid Farnsworth on the FOX sci-fi drama. Nicole promises that the writers will explore Astrid's past, just not this season. "They've been working on that for a really long time, and they want to make sure that it's perfect," Nicole told SCI FI Wire. "That's why we haven't seen it yet. So I'm hoping that it's going to come in Season Two. We will not get that episode in Season One, but I'm pretty sure that it will happen in Season Two, and I can't wait to find out what's in it, let me tell you." (SCI FI Wire)

Once again, CW is looking to get out of programming Sunday evenings, traditionally the netlet's lowest rated night of the week. At this time last year, the netlet had unveiled an unconventional plan to hand over its Sunday night block to Media Rights Capital, a deal which did not work out. Now CW is said to be in discussions with its affiliates to give up five hours of network time on Sundays so that it can focus on programming the rest of the week. Most of these affiliates are rumored to be talking with MGM about a movie package "on a barter advertising basis." (Variety)

SPOILER: Many Heroes fans are wondering whether Zachary Quinto will be leaving the ensemble drama now that he's donned those rubber ears to play Spock in J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek. Rest assured though that Sylar isn't going anywhere. "We can absolutely assure you that Zachary Quinto is coming back next season," writes Team Watch with Kristin. "We're hearing that Sylar is present in what's described as 'a very Fight Club-esque way.' Care to interpret what that means?" (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Paul Iacono (Human Giant) has been cast as the lead in MTV comedy pilot Hard Times, about a well-endowed geek who becomes popular after accidentally exposing himself during a sporting event. Pilot is written by Seth Grahame-Smith and will be directed/produced by David Katzenberg. (Hollywood Reporter)

Lionsgate Television has tapped Amazing Race creators Bertram Van Munster and Elise Doganieri to serve as executive producers on its new reality series Instantly Rich, described as "a lottery-style game show in which contestants enter to play via text message," which is being pitched to networks now as a one-hour primetime reality series. (Broadcasting & Cable)

Spike has now closed a deal for off-network rights to all 78 episodes so far of HBO's Entourage, as well as the sixth and any future seasons of the series for roughly $600,000 per episode. The cabler also negotiated the right to create a second window for the series on a sister network, most likely Comedy Central. (Hollywood Reporter)

Six Fox Television Stations will offer an eight-week test-run of half-hour reality series Beyond Twisted, a user generated content series from Telepictures Prods. and Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution that will feature commentary from the series' production staff. Unlike the studio's TMZ, it will steer away from celebrity-based clips. (Variety)

Mark Burnett has signed a deal to create programming based on the iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame. The first project under the deal will be a special celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Hollywood institution, which will be pitched to networks very soon. Burnett, meanwhile, is getting his own star on the Walk of Fame later this year. (Hollywood Reporter)

Disney XD has renewed action series Aaron Stone for a second season and handed out a series order to live-action comedy Viper Slap, starring Logan Miller as a teen who gets to lives his dream when he lands a gig as the new lead guitarist of his favorite 80s band and helps them step back into the spotlight. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Gossip Girl" Scores, Davies Names Possible Next "Doctor," DeKay Falls for "Old Christine," and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. I was absolutely riveted by last night's episode of Fringe (more on that in a bit) and not so riveted by another dull installment of 90210. Meh.

The CW's buzz-worthy Gossip Girl scored the highest numbers ever in the life of the series, drawing in 3.7 million viewers on Monday, an increase of nearly 500,000 from the week prior and 300,000 above Gossip Girl's second season premiere on September 1st. Those numbers are even more palatable for the netlet when you realize that it's a full one million viewers more than tuned in to the third episode of the first season. Not doing quite as well? FOX's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which lost 800,000 viewers from last week's season premiere to sink to a low of 5.5 million, off 36 percent from its Season One average. Ouch. (Entertainment Weekly)

More talk from NBC chiefs about the quality work co-chairman Ben Silverman is doing (in between "[partying] into the night") as the network gears up to launch their new season on Monday. One choice quote: ""He is not bound by the old rules of doing business, and that scares a lot of people in Hollywood," said Jeff Zucker. That's putting it mildly. (Los Angeles Times)

HBO has cast Zach Galifianakis (Tru Calling) in Jonathan Ames' drama pilot Bored to Death, opposite Jason Schwartzman and Ted Danson; he'll play Ray, a struggling comic book artist who is the best friend of would-be hero Jonathan (Schwartzman), an alcoholic writer who tries to reinvent himself as a private detective. (Hollywood Reporter)

Russell T. Davies has praised British actor Russell Tovey (Gavin & Stacey, History Boys) and suggested that he would be a good replacement for David Tennant when he decides to leave Doctor Who. Tovey is himself no stranger to Doctor Who, having appeared as Midshipman Frame in the Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned." Davies also revealed that he tried to secure J.K. Rowling to guest star in a Christmas special but was vetoed by Tennant, who thought the casting idea "sounds like a spoof." (BBC News)

Worst. Title. Ever. FOX is said to be developing drama Georgia and the Seven Associates, a contemporary take on the Snow White fable from writers David Weissman and David Diamond (Old Dogs), director Ken Kwapis (The Office), and executive producers Chris Brancato and Bert Salke. Plot would follow Georgia Burnett, a young lawyer who finds herself exiled from a top law firm run by her evil step-mother and must team up with seven quirky lawyers (each of whom manifests a personality based on one of the fable's dwarves) at a storefront legal firm. Project is said to be described as "The Devil Wears Prada meets Taxi." I kid you not. (Hollywood Reporter)

CBS' comedy Old Christine has locked Tim DeKay (Tell Me You Love Me, Carnivale) for a three-episode stint this season; he'll play a new love interest for Christine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). The duo are no strangers: DeKay memorably played Elaine's boyfriend Kevin (a.k.a. "Bizarro Jerry") in two 1996 episodes ("The Bizarro Jerry" and "The Soul Mate") of Seinfeld. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Saturday Night Live attempts to be as "fair and evenhanded as possible" in their skewering of political figures and included Amy Poehler's portrayal of Hillary Rodham Clinton in order to not make their Sarah Palin sketch seem like an attack. (New York Times)

Lori Petty (Masters of Horror) will guest star in several episodes of House this season, playing a patient with Huntington's Disease. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TNT has renewed Saving Grace and Raising the Bar, ordering 15 episodes of both to air in 2009. (Televisionary)

Stay tuned.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: New Adventures of Old Christine/New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS); America's Got Talent (NBC; 8-10 pm); America's Next Top Model (CW); Wife Swap (ABC); Bones (FOX)

9 pm: Criminal Minds (CBS); 90210 (CW); 20/20 (ABC); 'Til Death/Do Not Disturb (FOX)

10 pm: CSI: New York (CBS); Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC); Primetime (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: America's Next Top Model.

On tonight's episode ("You're Beautiful, Now Change"), the girls get their makeovers and go to Malibu for a swimsuit photo shoot with model/designer Susan Holmes.

9 pm: Project Runway on Bravo.

Season Five (the final season on Bravo) of Project Runway continues tonight. On tonight's episode ("Transformation"), the designers work with college-aged women who are about to enter the workforce and are tasked with creating sophisticated looks for their clients; Cynthia Rowley drops by as this week's guest judge, and Kenley creates yet-another 1950s-influenced dress.

Yep, "Old Christine" Still Makes Me Laugh

If I rarely talk about Old Christine, it's not because I've stopped watching. In fact, I haven't given up on the series, which this season has been a little hit or miss in the quality department.

Some episodes have been a little too sitcom-y (as in the comedy derives from the situation, rather than the characters themselves, like in the rock-climbing episode), rather than the witty and acerbic comedy that fans of the series have come to know and love.

However, this week's episode of Old Christine ("House") was a return to the strengths of the series, focusing on the relationships between the core characters and on the tempest in a teacup herself, Christine Campbell, who--after watching a tearful episode of Oprah--decides to be more like Ms. Winfrey and send back happiness into the world, rather than her typically selfish responses of wishing heart disease on happy people.

It's a character transformation that is tested when Richard and New Christine buy Old Christine's dream house and transform it into a beautiful home for them and Ritchie, complete with Martha Stewart-quality baking, framed photographs of the three of them, and Christine's old couch, sans pee smell. It immediately sends Christine into the deep end, not least of all for her craptacular house, which she quickly makes even more bizarre, by wedging both a couch (the aforementioned pee-stained one) and a set of bunk beds in various apertures of the house.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus is absolutely a joy to watch as Old Christine and, even after three seasons of selfish behavior, her energy and starpower hasn't been dimmed by playing such a self-absorbed and thoughtless character. Her reaction, after she, Barb, and Matthew have gotten the couch wedged into the main entryway of the house, is absolutely priceless. In her capable hands, Christine becomes more than just a madwoman: she is the anxious ball of energy inside all of us, jumping on the couch in fury and frustration in equal measure.

Likewise, Wanda Sykes proves herself to be the perfect foil for Louis-Dreyfus. Best friend Barb is low-key and opinionated but seems to be the only one (aside from her co-dependent brother Matthew, desperately in need of a haircut) who can cut Christine down to size with a pithy comment. Plus, her rationale last night for not liking when "people look like things that aren't people" was hysterical. I'm glad to see that the producers are wisely including the embittered Barb into Christine's dysfunctional family life.

Plus, who didn't just roll on the floor when they saw that typically awkward family photo of Old Christine gripping on to Ritchie for dear life while the boy squirmed uncomfortably? Or Christine's attempt at home cooking, complete with those "raisins"?

All in all, a fantastically funny installment of a series that more people should be watching. As someone who typically finds the most humor in the single-camera surreal comedy of series like 30 Rock and The Office, Old Christine is a vivid reminder that multi-camera series needn't be trite or dumbed-down in order to work. Let's just hope CBS remembers that when handing out renewals for next season...

StrikeWatch: And... It's Over

It's official: the WGA strike, which began November 5th, has finally come to a close, following a member vote overwhelmingly in favor of ending the strike (92.5% to be precise) and getting back to work during the official ten-day ratification process.

You can literally hear the sound of relief echoing through Hollywood today as writers return to their keyboards to try to pound out as many scripts as possible in time to salvage the 2007-08 season.

"Our membership has voted, and writers can go back to work," said WGA West President Patric Verrone in a statement. "This was not a strike we wanted, but one we had to conduct in order to win jurisdiction and establish appropriate residuals for writing in new media and on the Internet. Those advances now give us a foothold in the digital age. Rather than being shut out of the future of content creation and delivery, writers will lead the way as TV migrates to the Internet and platforms for new media are developed."

So what series will be the first to make it back on air? Most likely it will be NBC's Saturday Night Live, scheduled to return on February 23rd with 30 Rock's Tina Fey as the host (the following week brings Juno's Ellen Page).

As for dramas and comedies, don't expect to see any new episodes of series like Two and a Half Men, The Office, or Ugly Betty until mid-March (for multi-cam comedies) or April (for dramas and single-camera comedies).

As for how many episodes each series will be able to deliver, that depends entirely on the speed of the writing staff and the production schedule. The Office is expected to shoot six more episodes this year, possibly seven. The writing staff on that series had completed a script before the strike began (but were unable to film due to star Steve Carell joining the picket line) but will have to scrap another, a Christmas-themed episode, in an early stage.

"We're going to throw that one out," executive producer Greg Daniels told The New York Times as he explained how the writers would meet this week to plot out the series' storylines. "I'm tempted to just leap ahead to where we would have been."

Five episodes of 30 Rock are expected to be completed before May, depending on Alec Baldwin's availability; the star recently signed on to a feature film, making production slightly more difficult. (And yet something tells me it will all work out.)

The fates of ER and Scrubs are up in the air. It was widely thought that both NBC series would end at the end of this season but without filmed finales, one or both might head back to produce more episodes.... and ER could end up on the fall schedule again, should certain economic factors be worked out. As for Scrubs, NBC has not yet made a decision on the fate of those final six unproduced episodes.

CBS has handed out additional orders for two of its series, giving a six-episode order for comedy Rules of Engagement and four-episode order to Shark.

The network is also in discussions with Warner Bros. Television about restarting production on midseason comedy Old Christine, which was unable to fulfill its entire 13-episode order.

HBO will push the premieres of returning series Entourage and Big Love; Entourage is now expected to be shifted from summer to Fall 2008 while Big Love could launch in either fourth quarter or 2009.

For others, it's the end of the road. On the bubble for renewal (and not producing any further episodes this season): Journeyman, Bionic Woman, Cane, and Big Shots.

While ABC has not yet decided about ordering additional episodes of drama Women's Murder Club this season, if it does return, it will be without showrunners Sarah Fain and Elizabeth Craft and executive producer R. Scot Gemmill, who have all been let go from the series.

Campfire Stories: "Old Christine" Still Makes Me Laugh

I'm always a little surprised by how much I end up enjoying most episodes of CBS's Old Christine. I usually have an ingrained abhorrence of traditional multi-cam sitcoms (laugh tracks make me itch) but, when it comes to the misadventures of the supremely self-absorbed Christine Campbell, I just can't help myself.

Last night's episode ("Friends") was no exception, as Christine, ex-hubby Richard, brother Matthew, and BFF Barb (played with delight by the incandescent Wanda Sykes) head off on a road trip to stay close to weird little moppet Ritchie, away on a camping trip, his first night away from home, under the watchful (if terrified) eye of Jane Lynch (I can't help but love anything with Lynch in it).

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Wanda Sykes, and Jane Lynch in one place? Consider it comedic karma for Old Christine consistently managing to stay above the multi-cam comedy ilk. It might not be on the same level of Arrested Development, The Office, or 30 Rock, but I can't help but roll on the floor with laughter when I watch this show.

I loved the scene in which Christine gives Ritchie a walkie-talkie to communicate with her and kisses him repeatedly before she's pulled away from her son, while Marly tells her daughter that she'll be at the Golden Door Spa where "there are no phones" before disappearing and Lindsay's daughter is forced to console her mom, who will be lonely at home with her husband. Cue Lindsay and Christine both waving to the departing bus for very different reasons.

While Ritchie ends up camping in the desert, the foursome end up at a rundown motel. Richard realizes that New Christine has left him and moved onto another guy and he and Christine end up sleeping together, not because they've rekindled their romance but because it's just "pure sex" between friends.

Barb and Matthew, meanwhile, are forced to spend the night together after Barb's car breaks down in the middle of the desert during a snack run. Matthew's feelings for the unhappily married Barb have resurfaced and they're forced to share an especially cozy sleeping bag for warmth, resulting in an extremely funny exchange between the two in which Barb hopes that a snake has entered their sleeping bag.

Despite loving the chemistry of the newly minted foursome, I do miss New Christine (Emily Rutherfurd), after all. As much as you want to dislike the woman who replaced Christine in Richard's heart, it's hard not to fall for her. And, despite her somewhat loopy behavior, she's the perfect foil for the selfish Christine. I'm hoping that the series' producers haven't written New Christine out completely and that a reconciliation between New Christine and Richard is around the corner.

What do you think: should Richard end up with ex-wife Christine or with new love New Christine? Or better still: should the show's producers give us what we really want and put Matthew and Barb together as a full-blown couple? Find out next week for the second half of Old Christine's two-part season finale.

Next week on the season finale of Old Christine ("Frasier"), Christine learns that her reckless evening of passion with Richard may have irreversibly damaged her chances of getting together with Ritchie's teacher, Mr. Harris (Blair Underwood).

A New Man for "Old Christine": Why I Hope Blair Underwood Sticks Around For a While

Every once in a while, there's a recurring star that comes onto a show that feels so deliriously right that you just hope they'll end up sticking around long-term.

CBS's hit comedy Old Christine has done remarkably well at finding actors who manage to mesh seamlessly with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the rest of the cast... so well that you hope that they'll turn up again and again every week. Like Wanda Sykes, who recurs as Christine's best friend and business partner. Or Scott Bakula, who turned up earlier (with a terrifying wig/Shirley Jones haircut) this season as a love interest for Christine (and ended up being New Christine's beloved daddy).

Yes, readers, I am talking about Blair Underwood, currently recurring on Old Christine as Ritchie's teacher, the dashing Mr. Daniel Harris, who has so far made a melty puddle out of Christine Campbell. (Hell, they hid out together in the restroom of an ice cream parlor to avoid the merciless glare of Meanie Moms Marly and Lindsay.)

It's no surprise then that Christine has fallen for Daniel (even the Meanie Moms seem to be more than smitten), but the show's producers have (so far) wisely keep these two apart, even if they seem to be using Ritchie as an excuse for their enforced distance.

And lately the results have been as hysterical as they are touching. In last night's episode ("Ritchie Scores"), Christine turns up looking rather well turned out for a parent-teacher conference with Daniel and, despite their attempts to remain "friends," she inadvertently wound up holding Daniel's hand for what seemed a full five minutes. But Daniel seems to have a hold on everyone around him, as even Christine's ex-husband Richard developed quite the heterosexual male crush on Daniel as he and Christine "competed" for his affections. Truly hilarious, especially given Richard's fear that son Ritchie might be gay for his disdain of sports and desire to hang out with girls (a fear allayed, I might add, when Ritchie ends up kissing all of them).

It's obvious that Christine and Daniel will eventually get together (the chemistry between them is palpable), but I am hoping that Old Christine's producers prolong this sweet torture a little longer. I love seeing Christine all hot, bothered, and surprisingly put together (no pudding-stained pyjamas for these parent-teacher conferences) and watch as the always-talented Julia Louis Dreyfus flirts, falls, and generally gets herself tripped up by her attraction to Ritchie's teacher. (Her reaction to Daniel's new way of saying "good morning" to his friends was absolutely priceless.)

Plus, since Christine seems to have abysmal luck with the men in her life (who all seem to disappear after a few episodes' worth of guest spots), I'm hoping that there's a chance Daniel (and Blair Underwood) will stick around for a little while longer if they don't consummate their feelings for one another. After all, it could be a little weird for Ritchie (content to skip to the beat of his own drum), and they should put his needs first.

After all, won't somebody think of the children?

"Old Christine" airs Monday nights at 9:30 pm ET/PT on CBS. Look for it to make a leap to an earlier 8:30 pm timeslot in March.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Dateline (NBC); Gilmore Girls (CW); America's Funniest Home Videos (ABC); House (FOX); Wicked Wicked Games (MyNet)

9 pm: The 33rd Annual People's Choice Awards (CBS; 9-11 pm); Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC); Veronica Mars (CW); Big Day/Big Day (ABC); House (FOX); Watch Over Me (MyNet)

10 pm: Law & Order: SVU (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: Veronica Mars.

On tonight's repeat episode ("Lord of the Pi's"), Veronica investigates the disappearance of Selma Rose Hearst (guest star Patricia Hearst), the wealthy granddaughter of Hearst College's founder, who conveniently vanishes the very night before she is to cast a swing vote to determine the fate of the Greek system. Meanwhile, more problems ahead for Veronica and Logan and Veronica is terrified after her near-attack by the Hearst College rapist.

10 pm: Doctor Who on BBC America.

While Sci Fi may have wrapped Season Two of the newest incarnation of Doctor Who (complete with another new Doctor, played by David Tennant), catch up on Season One, beginning anew tonight on BBC America, as the Doctor (played by Christopher Eccleston) meets Rose Tyler for the first time.

Why We Love "Chris" and "Old Christine"

There are some combinations that are just plain great together, like chocolate and peanut butter, and some that don't sound so appetizing on paper but are just satisfying none the less (like, say, lamb and mint jelly). Of the latter, there's Monday night's odd-couple pairing of Everybody Hates Chris and Old Christine. Before I start getting emails from people "reminding" me that they're not exactly paired together on the same network (Chris is on the CW, while Christine lives happily on CBS), I'm talking more about the general neighborhood than them actually being next-door neighbors. And now that both have taken up residence on Monday evenings, the similarities between them become all the more apparent.

Both of these series couldn't be more different in terms of tone or visual style, but both Everybody Hates Chris and Old Christine have become indicative of a new breed of modern family comedies, comprising a direct reaction to all the Friends clones about twenty-something singles living in the city, or workplace comedies like Scrubs, etc. While they're have always been sitcoms that focused on the family (hell, just off the top of my head, Cosby Show, Family Ties, Growing Pains), these feature a more modern definition of the word "family." They're not necessarily white, suburban families with 2.4 kids and a mini-van in the driveway; instead, Chris and Old Christine feature families that wouldn't necessarily have gotten a smart, sassy sitcom a few years back. On Everybody Hates Chris, our leads are an African American family teetering on the edge of poverty in Brooklyn in 1984; over on Old Christine, it's a fractured and extended family of a divorcee, her son, her brother, her ex-husband, and his new girlfriend. But somehow the circumstances each of these families find themselves in don't diminish the love and compassion each of them share for one another... yet neither manages to sacrifice laughter for warm, fuzzy, Very Special Episode moments.

I love coming home from a long day of work on Mondays and plopping myself down at 8 pm to catch the relocated Chris. Everybody Hates Chris is not The Cosby Show by a long stretch, but it does have the same heart and soul as its precursor. On Chris, the kids actually do act like kids, but the entire format has been updated and repackaged as a single-camera comedy capable of showing us the fantasy life inside each of its characters. Chris' family is not your typical sitcom family: dad Julius (Terry Crews) works two jobs to support his family, mom Rochelle (Tichina Arnold) is a ghetto snob who'd just as soon wallop her kids as kiss them, younger brother Drew (Tequan Richmond) is handsome and athletic (and taller than Chris is), and sister Tanya (Imani Hakim) is a spoiled daddy's girl. Chris himself is the only black kid in an all-white school and the victim of constant bullying and racial epithets (those suitable for the watershed 8 pm hour, anyway). Tyler James Williams, who plays Chris, is so confident and natural in the role that you can't help but love this kid and root for him to one day grow up and become, well, Chris Rock. We caught a glimpse of the future Rock in a recent episode in which Chris has to give a speech when he runs for student council and Williams managed to effortless channel the comedian's famous delivery (just don't ask Michael Scott to do the same). While everybody in Bed-Stuy might hate Chris, it's an absolute pleasure to come home to his family every Monday night. Wacky, irreverent, and riotous, Everybody Hates Chris might take place in 1984, but its appeal is completely modern and its sensibilities timeless.

On Old Christine, Christine's family is comprised of diverse elements that don't always gel emotionally, but they are always there for their beloved Ritchie, who in un-traditional sitcom style is still a lovable little moppet but he's completely weird in an adorable way. (Yes, I am thinking about last week's episode when Matthew was forced to bunk with Ritchie and discovered his, um, eccentric nighttime routine.) However, the series has fun with this rather than have it become a predominant focus or obnoxious tangent. Ritchie (Trevor Gagnon) is just who he is and, after all, he is the son of the supremely wacky Christine and Richard and nephew to Matthew (Hamish Linklater), the poster boy for arrested development. The image presented by Old Christine is certainly not perfect or idyllic. This is no smiling, happy Family Ties family, but a challenging, dynamic extended brood. A few years ago, this would have been a provocative, radical idea, but our notions of "family" have changed since the days of the Keatons and Cosbys. According to Old Christine, family is what gathers around you and comforts you, even when that unit is not comprised of a mom and dad married to one another and is instead your mom, your dad, and his new 28-year-old girlfriend... who just happens to share the same name with your mom.

Besides the fact that the series is actually laugh-out-loud funny, something I never thought a traditional multi-camera comedy would be able to make me do for a long time. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Clark Gregg are the single best divorced non-couple on television today and, while I'd watch Louis-Dreyfus read the Anchorage phone book aloud, I love the way she completely inhabits the role of Christine Campbell and turns in a completely uninhibited performance each week.

Plus, I'd much rather watch either of these series than tune in to any of the permutations of what my brother calls "fat guy/hot wife" generic comedies like According to Jim, which are far too traditional in their humor and setups and suddenly exploded onto the scene a few years back. While Chris and Old Christine might not be for everyone (though I can't imagine why), I'm happy to spend my Monday nights with both of their lovable, messed up, kooky families.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Friday Night Lights (NBC); Gilmore Girls (CW); Dancing with the Stars (ABC; 8-9:30 pm); Desire (MyNet)

9 pm: The Unit (CBS); Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC); Veronica Mars (CW); Help Me Help You (ABC; 9:30-10 pm); Fashion House (MyNet)

10 pm: Criminal Minds (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Gilmore Girls.

On tonight's episode ("The Great Stink"), written by yet another new Gilmore writer Gina Fattore, Emily and Richard are thrilled when Lorelai brings Christopher to Friday night dinner but Chris learns that ex-wife Sherry wants him to send their daughter GiGi to stay with her in Paris. Meanwhile, the episode's title refers to a malodorous problem plaguing Stars Hollow. If it smells like the stench of this once great series rotting, I think you've found it.

9 pm: Veronica Mars.

On tonight's episode ("Charlie Don't Surf"), Logan sits down for dinner with Veronica and Papa Keith and enlists Veronica's help when he realizes that his inheritance is suddenly running low... a mystery which leads them smack into Charlie Stone, played by Gilmore Girls' resident Logan, Matt Czuchry!

10 pm: The Street on BBC America.

On the fourth episode ("Bold Street: Football") of Jimmy McGovern's new drama The Street, a a top football (soccer to the Yanks in the audience) prospect is caught shoplifting a pair of sneakers. If you were looking for light-hearted mirth, look elsewhere.

While There's Nothing New About "Old Christine," I Like Her

I can't believe I am saying this, but I have a little bit of a crush on Old Christine. Okay, first of all I refuse to call the show by its complete title. The New Adventures of Old Christine? Way too much of a mouthful. I'll call the new Julia Louis-Dreyfus vehicle by what I am sure will become its abbreviated moniker, Old Christine. Is the show anything entirely new or fresh? Certainly not. But there is something comforting and rewarding about seeing Louis-Dreyfus take on a new role in a show that is comedically far ahead of fellow new coms Free Ride, Courting Alex, or The Loop. Even if there is still a laugh-track.

The premise is simple: the Christine of the title is a divorced mother of an adorable eight-year-old boy Ritchie (Trevor Gagnon) who has managed to remain friends with her charming ex-husband Richard (Clark Gregg), who two years after their divorce still drops by and acts like her best friend. She lives with her slacker younger brother Matthew (Hamish Linklater), owns a chain of upscale women-only gyms, and is generally content with the way things are. That is, until Christine drops her son off at his new fancy private school and learns that her ex-hubby has been seeing someone. Someone also named Christine, like her, but many, many years younger and a lot more ditsy (Emily Rutherfurd). So Old Christine has to deal with New/Young Christine, the blonde preppy mothers at her son's school, and begin to navigate the complex dating world of Los Angeles, all while pretending that she's okay with the new arrangement.

Louis-Dreyfus is instantly likeable as Christine and grounds the show; she's a more centered version of her character Elaine from (dare I say it?) Seinfeld. She is one of the few actresses today who can manage to be beautiful and self-deprecating at the same time; she's never afraid to play the sap and is never above performing physical comedy. (What other actress, while talking about how she'd rather wait for the "magic" of meeting someone rather than being set up on a blind date, would be stuffing her face with bagels while she uttered the line?)

Her relationship with her (straight) younger brother (played with understated cool by American Dreams' Linklater) is for once a varation on the twee and overused stereotype of the gay best friend. As a slacker and bachelor, his life is even more of a mess than Christine's, but somehow having someone just living there is a comfort to her. And their dialogue at the supermarket (in the second episode, "Supertramp"), where he instructs her on how to pick up a one-night stand, is priceless. But I do think there's something missing in the form of a female confidante for Christine (I don't count the towel girl at one of her gym branches) and having the always hilarious Wanda Sykes guest star as Christine's friend Barb in last night's episode ("Open Water") made me realize it all the more. I can only hope that the producers either bring back Sykes or have her recur on a regular basis. Surrounded by men, Christine needs some sort of female support system.

I believe it's possible to judge a show on the strength of its guest stars and if that's true, then Old Christine has already come out on top. Aside from last night's Wanda Sykes appearance, the week before featured Andy Richter as a lovelorn divorcé whom Christine sleeps with as a one night stand... only to discover that he has a child at her son's prep school and, boy, is he clingy. So clingy that the moms refer to him as "The Sad Dad."

Will Christine ever find love? In last night's episode ("Open Water"), she came pretty close. After Barb (Sykes) sets her up on a disatrous blind date with a man who brings his own food to the restaurant (he pulls out a piece of chicken from inside his jacket pocket), Christine falls for a guy whom she originally thought was her blind date and whom she keeps seeing on his own series of blind-dates-from-hell.

If there's one glaring flaw with the show it's the omnipresent laugh-track, but that's more a problem I have with the genre than Old Christine specifically. I just wish that the show would allow the audience to find the joke on their own without the guidance of canned laughter. It makes me not want to laugh, despite myself.

Will Old Christine escape the dreaded Seinfeld curse? It's too soon to tell. But ultimately, I can't say no to Julia Louis-Dreyfus' charms. I want Christine to find love, but then I know that the show will have to end. And with the quick wit charms of Christine, old or no, I hope we can grow old together for a bit.

"Old Christine" airs Monday evenings at 9:30 pm on CBS.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Most Outrageous Moments/Most Outrageous Moments (NBC); Gilmore Girls (WB); According to Jim/Hope & Faith (ABC); American Idol (FOX; 8-10); America's Next Top Model (UPN)

9 pm: The Unit (CBS); Scrubs/Scrubs (NBC); Gilmore Girls (WB); Sons & Daughters/Sons & Daughters (ABC); Veronica Mars (UPN)

10 pm: The Amazing Race (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

Gilmore Girls is a repeat, AGAIN. And looks to be so for the foreseeable future. I feel lost without an 8:00 show on Tuesday nights. But at least the two repeat episodes of GG that the WB is airing tonight are written respectively by Daniel Palladino and Amy Sherman Palladino. And if you haven't seen those episodes yet, check 'em out tonight. If you haven't seen them, they're new to you.

If I've managed to catch up on all my TiVo'ed program, I'll be watching David Mamet and Shawn Ryan's espionage drama The Unit at 9, followed by the always stressful Amazing Race at 10 pm. On tonight's episode of The Amazing Race, entitled "It's Not Over Till the Phil Sings" (you've got to love those wacky titles), several teams are stranded at a foreign airport (Germany perhaps?) when airline computer systems crash. Meanwhile, one team leads another in the wrong direction. (When will the teams ever learn? It's this simple: don't follow other teams!)

And if you're not watching Scrubs, why not? I unfortunately have been watching the first two seasons on DVD and Buena Vista isn't releasing them quickly enough for me to catch up with the show's run. But, if you're looking for something to watch tonight, let me urge you to watch Zach Braff and Sarah Chalke and the gang in one of the smartest and funniest comedies on television. You'll thank me in the morning.