Sweets to the Sweet: Kathy Marquart Debates Fight or Flight on "Big Love"

I am still in shock after watching last night's heart-wrenching episode of Big Love ("Fight or Flight"), which offered some brutal plot twists, shocking reveals, and one of the most tragic deaths on any drama series.

This season of Big Love has proven itself more than willing to pull out all the stops in the name of status quo-shakeup, between Sarah's pregnancy, the addition of a (short-lived) fourth wife, new alliances, God Squads, and, well, murder. The result has been a dizzying blend of complex relationships, dramatic tension, and gasp-inducing plot twists that have placed Big Love at the forefront of intelligent, compelling American television today.

This week's episode of Big Love ("Fight or Flight") started off as a brilliantly understated look at that most primal of hard-wiring, the fight-or-flight mechanism, and how this natural physiological response colors all of our interactions. It's seen most keenly in the showdown between Bill and the wives against Nicki, between Barb and daughter Sarah, and in the plight of resourceful Kathy Marquart.

Kathy. I was completely traumatized by the death of Kathy Marquart last night. For many reasons, Kathy has become a shining example of purity, goodness, and grace within the off-kilter universe that Big Love has so realistically created. Whether it was her inherent love for the psychologically unstable Wanda and her efforts to include Wanda and care for her, even in the face of Wanda's blatant upset that Joey would be taking another wife (to the point where Wanda was wetting the bed at night with fear and worry) or her efforts to remain true to herself even after Roman went free after forcibly marrying her to Ron, Kathy has stood out among the series' multitude of damaged characters as a woman who has remained unerringly faithful and true to her perceptions of right.

When Kathy went to go pick flowers for Wanda's hair (on the day of her wedding, no less), I knew that someone truly awful was about to happen to Kathy. But I never suspected that she would be kidnapped from the hillside by Roman Grant's people and brought to the Greenes, where Roman would enact his revenge on Kathy by once again forcibly marrying her to a man she didn't love: in this case, the sadistic Hollis Greene. Her fate, as seen to by Roman: that Kathy would marry Hollis with his blessing, be whisked away to a compound in Mexico, and bare children for Hollis Greene.

Kathy could have acquiesced, gone along with Roman's plan, and accepted her fate. But she wasn't having any of that. She stabbed Selma Greene (more on her in a bit) in the leg with a pitchfork, ran out of the barn, and stole a truck. Kathy did the sensible thing: she ran. Unfortunately, Roman and the Greenes were faster and were relentless in their pursuit, repeatedly slamming into the truck with Roman's Hummer and forcing her off the road... But Kathy's flower-strewn braid (shades of Ophelia, perhaps?) was caught in the door and the impact of the truck hitting a telephone pole snapped her neck.

I'm really going to miss Kathy. Her death affected me in a way that very few television deaths have: it was senseless, tragic, and unnecessary. But I am glad that the producers gave the luminous Mireille Enos a double role to play: that of Kathy and her twin sister Jodean. I'm sure that some viewers are secretly hoping that it was Jodean who met her maker in last night's episode but there's little to support any theories to that effect. Big Love has never been one to use any subterfuge in its often heartbreaking plot twists. Sadly, it's Kathy who is going to her grave.

Nicki. I cannot believe that Nicki went so far as to go out with Ray Henry... and kissed him in the office. After everything that has happened, after all of Nicki's deceit and lies (and even being found out by Margene in this episode), I am completely shocked that she would forsake her martial vows and take the first steps towards consummating an affair with another man and that she would so blatantly tell Margene the truth about what she was doing working at the district attorney's office in the first place. Clearly, Nicki is playing with fire and she's either not thinking about the consequences of her actions or is just in a state of complete denial about how utterly wrong and twisted her actions have been over the last few months. But clearly, it's eating away at her subconsciously: her fainting spell during the intervention would prove that her emotions are clearly at odds with one another. Is her assumption of Margene's identity an effort to escape the prison of her own life: to experience the freedom and ease that come with being a less "moral" woman? To walk the line with immorality, temptation, and vice?

Margene. For her part, I was surprised that Margene didn't just tell Barb and Bill what Nicki had done but instead manipulated the situation in order to get her own way: that Nicki would quit her job and stay home with the kids so that Margene could experience the outside world. The fact that she started to cry when she couldn't go to the store with Pam, her one selfish daily escape from familyhood, belied her deep depression (love how readily she accepted Pam's Zoloft) about her current situation. Yet she does bounce back in true Margene-fashion: she dyes her hair back to its normal color, blackmails Nicki into looking after the kids, and seemingly regains her old sunnier outlook on life.

Sarah. I'm glad that Heather called Sarah out on her completely selfish use of her so-called best friend. Poor Heather has suffered through so much, has altered her own plans for the future, has so unerringly supported Sarah through polygamy, sexual activity, and an unwanted pregnancy without judgment that it's absolutely shocking that Sarah once again pulls the rug out from underneath Heather and announces that she's not going to go to ASU, after all. Is it Bill's generous gift of a car that brings about this change? Hardly: it's her own feelings that she needs to punish herself for wanting her baby to die despite loving it. A fact that she finally and tearfully admits to Barb, the real reason why she's avoided intimacy with her mother. It's a shocking thing to say aloud but Sarah finally does stop running and confronts her mother, bearing her soul and admitting the dark thought she's been having: that she is being punished by God for her wrongdoing. And Barb offers Sarah the one thing she's been running from, a mother's love and forgiveness.

The Greenes. I had no idea that the mannish Selma Greene was actually Roman's little sister, therefore making Roman and Hollis Greene brothers-in-law. Poor Selma was humiliated by Hollis' decision to take a new wife and by Roman telling her to fall in line in a more traditional manner. The sight of Selma in a pink dress was both sad and terrifying. That Roman would consort with the people who shot him just proves how completely desperate he is to consolidate his power and reclaim the prophet's throne at Juniper Creek. Bill made the mistake once of getting into bed with the Greenes and it brought him nothing but heartache. Will the same be said of Roman, now described as "the prophet of the Holiday Inn" by Joey, when all is said and done?

What did you think of this week's episode? Were you as shocked and saddened as I was to see Kathy die? Did Nicki's behavior surprise you? And what will happen once Bill and Barb find out what's really been going on behind their backs? Discuss.

Next week on Big Love ("Rough Edges"), Bill urges the DA to bring murder charges against Roman for Kathy's death; Margene decides to launch a business; Nicki tries to find refuge in her past; Sarah struggles to map out her future.

Saints and Sinners: Things Fall Apart on "Big Love"

Secrets have a nasty way at surfacing when you least expect it.

And nothing proved that adage better than this week's episode of HBO's Big Love ("Come, Ye Saints"), which had the entire Henrickson clan pack up and make a 2,500+ mile road trip in order to visit the Joseph Smith shrine in Cumorah, New York, where Bill hoped to bury a time capsule for future generations to discover.

Of course, this being Big Love, this road trip is not your ordinary vacation but one made a hell of a lot more difficult by the competing interests of Bill's three wives, the many secrets being kept by him, his wives, and his brood of children, and the way that family vacations seem to tear people apart more than they do bring them together.

Margene and Ben. I'm glad that the writers haven't dropped the storyline involving the seemingly shared attraction between Margene and Ben and that it finally (after three seasons) came to a head in this week's episode in which both Ben and Margie saw each other naked. For Margene, it was an opportunity to finally prove her strength and determination, placing herself in a maternal role and spurning Ben's advances, especially after he wrote her a love letter that declared his romantic feelings for her. It was such a wonderful moment for Margene as a character and proves just how far she's come from the easy-going third wife we saw in Season One; instead, Margene proves that she has just as much grit and determination as Barb or Nicki and lays it on the line with Ben.

For Ben's part, I can understand his confusion as he and Margene are pretty close in age and they've always been physically affectionate with one another. But he is going down a very dangerous road: Margene is his one of his mothers and there is absolutely no hope of a future between them. Still, I couldn't believe that he would risk someone finding out about his attraction by writing a letter to Margene... which Tiny does find in the car. That he was so blase about anyone learning makes me very worried that this attraction isn't going anywhere and that Ben won't drop it just because Margene says so.

The letter also manages to distract Margene as she places Ginger's ashes on the roof of the car... and then drives off. The look of absolute shame and sadness as Margene tells the others that her mother is gone and blew off into the wind was heartbreaking; it's really the first time that Margene comes to terms with the fact that Ginger has died.

And Margene's bathing suit drop-by at Bill and Nicki's room, to help him get over his, er, "pill" dependency? Priceless.

Wives' World. I loved the road trip that the three sister-wives take to find a suitable place for Ginger's ashes, a pilgrimage as important as the one that Bill is undertaking. After everything that happened with Ana, I was glad to see that Barb wanted to mend some fences and have the three of them spend some time alone for a change. I am sure Bill thought it was a good idea... until Margene came clean about the fact that he's been taking Viagra (a subplot running since Season One). Naturally, Nicki thinks it's more about her than anything else, Barb feels betrayed that Bill never told her (and throws it in his face that he never needed any pharmaceutical help when it was just the two of them), and Margene is actually sweet and supportive about the whole thing. Sigh.

Bill. I loved the moment when Bill is trying to get the entire family to pose in a photograph when he realizes just how off the rails his family has gotten. This isn't the portrait of a loving, happy family but a collection of unhappy strangers griping at one another. And this trip does test his faith in numerous ways: he's forced to admit that he's only human to his wives, face up to his daughter's sexual activity, prove his devotion to his religion when faced with intolerance, and literally carry his family's past, present, and future barefoot along a long road. (Loved that the women forgot him at the campsite and drove off without him.) That he asks his god for a sign while facing away from the spectacle of the flying angel in Cumorah only makes his question all the more desperate and moving.

Nicki. Nicki, meanwhile, is continuing to flirt with her old boss Ray, who still believes her to be someone else... and even goes so far as to buy Bill a cardigan. I can't help but feel that she is going to go down a very dangerous road with this so-far innocent flirtation. And I couldn't believe that Nicki didn't immediately come clean about the fact that the birth control pills were HERS and not Sarah's, even when Barb summoned Sarah to her room and railed against pre-marital sex. Still, Nicki proved her loyalty to Sarah in the end by coming clean about the fact that she's been taking oral contraceptive for FOUR YEARS now and lying to all of them about trying to have another child. What was shocking to me was that Nicki didn't seem to think she'd done anything at all wrong by keeping this from them. Still, her support of Sarah showed a compassionate side to Nicki that doesn't often materialize. Like Margene putting her foot down with Ben, the way that she consoled Sarah pointed to the fact that she is becoming more of a mother to the children.

Sarah. And then there was Sarah. After finally coming to terms with the fact that she wanted to keep her child and raise it herself (even going so far as to set up a makeshift family with Heather in Arizona), Sarah lost the baby in a heartrending plot twist. It was only a matter of time before the family found out just what Sarah was concealing and, once she and Bill decided to take one last father-daughter outing (to Chicago), I knew that everything would fall apart. Still, I didn't anticipate that Sarah would miscarry on the family trip... nor that she would turn for help to Nicki, of all people, and have Nicki be so understanding and supportive. She was right to tell Sarah that she had to tell her parents about what had happened. The scene in which she does so, silent of all dialogue, was beautifully understated and poignant.

Can Sarah find a place among the chaos of the Henrickson clan? Will she run to Arizona? That remains to be seen, now that her secret is out and her child is no more. But at least she won't be burdened with carrying that guilt around any longer: sometimes the truth really can set you free.

Next week on Big Love ("Fight or Flight"), Nicki finds herself in hot water at home and at work; Glory smuggles a prized church document to Bill; Joey wants to add Kathy as a second wife.

PaleyFest09 Full Schedule Announced: "Pushing Daisies," "Battlestar Galactica," "Fringe," "Big Love," "Dollhouse," and Many Others to Be Feted

Ending several months of speculation, The Paley Center for Media has today announced the full lineup for PaleyFest09, the 26th Annual William S. Paley Television Festival.

Among the honorees this year are the casts and creators of 90210, Battlestar Galactica and Caprica, The Big Bang Theory, Big Love, Desperate Housewives, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Fringe, The Hills, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Mentalist, Swingtown, and True Blood.

PaleyFest09 will be held from April 10th to April 23rd at the Cinerama Dome at the ArcLight Cinemas in Hollywood; the Paley Center will also present a special closing night presentation honoring Swingtown at The Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills on April 24.

Other festival firsts this year? PaleyFest09 will be the festival event to honor a new media property, in this case Joss Whedon's celebrated web series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and will be the first to premiere the last three unseen episodes of ABC's sadly cancelled series Pushing Daisies.

“For twenty-six years, we have celebrated the best of television, and now new media, with the creative teams who make the breakthrough programs. This interaction between the creative community and media enthusiasts has made this annual Festival a 'Must Be There' event,” said Pat Mitchell, President/CEO of The Paley Center for Media.

The full PaleyFest09 schedule can be found below but, as always, please note that events/participants are subject to change.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadephia
Friday, April 10 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Danny DeVito (“Frank Reynolds”), Glenn Howerton (“Dennis Reynolds”/Executive Producer/Writer), Rob McElhenney (“Mac”/Creator/Executive Producer/Writer/Director), Kaitlin Olson (“Sweet Dee”). Additional panelists to be announced.

90210
Saturday, April 11 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Panelists from the cast and creative team to be announced.

True Blood
Monday, April 13 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Alan Ball (Creator/Executive Producer), Ryan Kwanten (“Jason Stackhouse”), Steven Moyer (“Bill Compton”), Anna Paquin (“Sookie Stackhouse”), Sam Trammell (“Sam Merlotte”), Rutina Wessley (“Tara Thorton”). Additional panelists to be announced.

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog
Tuesday, April 14 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Felicia Day (“Penny”), Nathan Fillion (“Captain Hammer”), Jed Whedon (“Bad Horse Chorus #2/Dead Bowie”/Composer/Writer), Joss Whedon (Creator/Executive Producer/Writer/Director), Zack Whedon (Executive Producer/Writer).

Dollhouse
Wednesday, April 15 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Joss Whedon (Creator/Executive Producer/Writer/Director), Eliza Dushku (“Echo”), Enver Gjoka (“Victor”), Fran Kranz (“Topher”), Dichen Lachman (“Sierra”), Harry Lennix (“Boyd”), Tahmoh Penikett (“Paul”), Olivia Williams (“Adelle”).

The Big Bang Theory
Thursday, April 16 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Kaley Cuoko (“Penny”), Johnny Galecki (Leonard), Jim Parsons (“Sheldon”). Additional panelists to be announced.

The Mentalist
Friday, April 17 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Simon Baker (“Patrick Jane”), Bruno Heller (Creator /Executive Producer) Tim Kang (“Kimball Cho”), Chris Long (Coexecutive Producer/Director), Amanda Righetti (“Grace Van Pelt”), Robin Tunney (“Teresa Lisbon”), Owain Yeoman (“Wayne Rigsby”). Additional panelists to be announced.

Desperate Housewives
Saturday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Panelists from the cast and creative team to be announced.

PaleyFest09 Special Matinee Screening Event: Pushing Daisies’ Last Unaired Episodes
Sunday, April 19 at 1:00 p.m.
Introduction by Bryan Fuller (Creator/Executive Producer).

Battlestar Galactica/Caprica
Evening Sponsor: Microsoft Zune
Monday, April 20 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: David Eick (Executive Producer), Ronald D. Moore (Executive Producer). Additional panelists to be announced.

The Hills
Tuesday, April 21 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Tony DiSanto (Executive Producer), Adam DiVello (Creator/Executive Producer), Liz Gateley (Executive Producer), Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge, Spencer Pratt. Additional panelists to be announced.

Big Love
Wednesday, April 22 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Ginnifer Goodwin (“Margene Heffman”), Bill Paxton (“Bill Henrickson”), Chloe Sevigny (“Nicolette Grant”), Harry Dean Stanton (“Roman Grant”), Jeanne Tripplehorn (“Barbara Dutton Henrickson”). Additional panelists to be announced.

Fringe
Thursday, April 23 at 7:00 p.m.
In Person: Joshua Jackson (“Peter Bishop”), John Noble (“Dr. Walter Bishop”), Lance Reddick (“Homeland Security Agent Phillip Broyles”), Anna Torv (“Special Agent Olivia Dunham”). Additional panelists to be announced.

Swingtown Celebration
Evening Sponsor: Netflix, Inc.
*Friday, April 24 at 6:00 p.m. at The Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills*
Festival Closing Reception & Panel Discussion
In Person: Mike Kelley (Creator/Executive Producer), Alan Poul (Executive Producer). Additional panelists to be announced.

Tickets to PaleyFest09 will go on sale February 26th to Paley Center members and the general public beginning March 1st.

So who's in this year? And what panels are you hoping to see? Discuss.

The Shove Heard 'Round the World: The Trial of Roman Grant on "Big Love"

Oh, Nicki.

After telling Margene that she either has to deal with her issues or move on, you're not exactly following your own advice, now are you? You tried to tell Adaleen that you didn't want to get married that first time, when Roman forced you into marriage with a much older man; you blindly followed Roman's instructions and caused the prosecution to collapse by tampering with key witnesses; you betrayed your husband and sister wives. You stood by and did nothing as your morally corrupt father was released from prison a free man.

And then there was the push.

I'm talking, of course, about last night's episode of HBO's Big Love ("On Trial"), which featured the legal battle between the state of Utah and Roman Grant and which, thanks to its tautness and surprising twists, could have been the season finale rather than the third season's fourth episode.

But the most surprising bit--which caused me to literally gasp out loud--was seeing Nicki deliberately push her father down the court steps. Was it Nicki finally showing her true colors? Or was it the only way she could express her true feelings when faced with the true consequences of what she had done?

Nicki. I really thought that Nicki would come through for the Henricksons in the end, but she proved that her true loyalty lays with the Grants, through and through, despite everything that they've done to the Henricksons, to herself, to Kathy Marquart and the others. She stole files from the prosecution, passed along Rhonda's whereabouts to Adaleen, and dug up $30,000 in stolen UEB money (loved that Adaleen had previously told her she could keep her half) in order to pay Rhonda to vanish and not testify against Roman. She is completely imprisoned by her life on the compound, by the moral cesspool from which she sprang. Despite Adaleen telling her that her first wedding day was the happiest day of her life (and how they sang as they sewed her pink dress), Nicki knows deep down inside what Roman has done is wrong. And evil. Yet when she has the chance to stop her father, she caves to his and her mother's demands once again.

So why the push then? Why does Nicki shove Roman down the stairs? Is it a small rebellion, t he biggest thing Nicki can do to show her father that she does hate him even after proving her love over and over again, a tiny way to prove her own thirst for independence, or is it the taunt of a spoiled brat? To me, it was the only language that Nicki could find to express her frustration at that moment, at the day of reckoning, with full knowledge of the laws--both man-made and moral--that she had broken, a violent reaction to what had been done against her and the others in the only way she knew how.

Perhaps she and Margene aren't so different after all. Perhaps we all do internalize and express our emotions in unlikely and unpredictable ways.

Margene. Speaking of Margie, I'm very worried about her. Existing in a state of supreme denial after the death of her mother, Margene is quickly becoming obsessed with Ginger, going so far as to dance obsessively while surrounded by her mother's pictures and letters and then dying her hair blonde, just like in Ginger's Marilyn-esque showgirl days. Last week, we saw her compulsively cleaning the house; I'm glad that Barb and Bill are trying to give her some space to grieve in her own way but neither of them seems to be seeing the danger signs. Color me concerned. (And I will admit that I miss brunette Margene.)

Ana. I was shocked as all hell to see Bill propose to Ana in the midst of all the trial craziness. I think Ana's still unsure of what she wants and if she's ready to become involved with this entire family and embrace this new lifestyle. She sure as hell can't get along with Nicki, as proven during the supermarket scene, and her integration into the Henrickson clan will not be a smooth one, I think. Still, she hasn't said yes just yet but I think she could be willing to give this a try.

Bill. Once again, Bill is attempting to play one side against another. After everything Alby has done to them, I was even more shocked to see Bill invite Alby to his office for a meeting and them over to the house for dinner. Alby's no fool and he knew exactly what Bill was trying to do, puffing him up and trying to form an alliance against Roman, an alliance that crumbles the very second the case starts going in Roman's favor. Yes, Bill is trying to secure his family's future and he's desperate for cash and security but Alby will sooner gut him than side with him against Roman.

Sarah. Poor Sarah really is weighing all of her options and is considering running away to school in Arizona to conceal her pregnancy from her family and then give the child up for adoption. Still, I cannot see her giving the baby to the couple with OCD-induced rages and a same-sex-attracted husband. (Not going to happen.) I'm glad, however, that Sarah came clean to Heather about the baby and at least can talk to her and Ben about what's going on. The scene between Sarah and Ben on the couch as they watch the trial coverage on the news was beautifully understated as Ben tells his sister that he'll support her no matter what. Poignant and affecting as well as sweet at the same time.

Kathy. I also really felt for Kathy, who has emerged this season as one of the most tragic figures in Big Love's swelling cast of characters. (The scene where Wanda tells her to leave and then says she's only kidding--but not really--was heartbreaking. Is there a character more innately sweet and good than Kathy?) Bravely taking the witness stand as the only person willing to stand up to Roman, she's utterly blindsided by her twin sister Jodean's testimony that they were in fact 19 years old when they were sealed to Ron. I was baffled as to why Jodean would betray her beloved sister until we learn that Adaleen was holding Jodean's son hostage. The look on Kathy's face when she sees her twin contradict her testimony--and that on Jodean's face when Kathy flees the courtroom--was heartrending. God, I love Mireille Enos.

Roman. If we learn anything from the trial of Roman Grant, it's that the good guys don't always win and the bad guys aren't always punished. Sometimes there are forces even greater than that of justice: fear, greed, duty. Evil does sometimes prevail, even in the face of moral outrage. The look of satisfaction on Roman's face when he walks out of court a free man was terrifying. He said that there would be a day of reckoning against those who stood opposed to him and now that he is out of jail--with only a six-month victim sympathy course, no less--he'll be gunning for Alby and Bill. Things are about to get very scary, methinks.

Rhonda. Finally, there was Rhonda. After admitting to Sarah that she's confused and scared and has done the wrong thing, it finally seems as though Rhonda will do the RIGHT thing for a change and stand up to Roman Grant. Yet, she takes the cash that Adaleen offers and even accepts that Roman doesn't love her, doesn't care about her, and never wants to see her again. Boarding a truck bound for Los Angeles, she weeps for what she's lost as she sings along to her demo. Yet there's no freedom for Rhonda, no matter what she might say. Her trucker friend tells her to come sit closer to him and we're left with the feeling that Rhonda will never escape the cycle of abuse that has colored her life to that point. Freedom never comes in the end, even when--like Kathy--you're willing to stand up to the face of tyranny and depravity.

All in all, another fantastic installment of Big Love that once again proves that Season Three is pulling out all of the stops. Just what will happen next and where this season is going is anybody's guess and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Next week on Big Love ("For Better or For Worse"), the family's new living arrangement with Ana results in squabbling among Barb, Nicki, and Margene; Sarah, Ben, Heather, and Frankie make a dangerous trip to the compound in order to find Frankie's mother; Alby strives to create a military state at Juniper Creek with the formation of his "God Squads"; Roman calls a family meeting; Bill tries to get brother-in-law Ted to loan him some start-up capital for the casino; Nicki contemplates returning to work at the DA's office.

Channel Surfing: More "Big Love" at HBO, "NCIS" Spinoff Nabs O'Donnell and LL Cool J, Anna Friel, Swoosie Kurtz to Get "Desperate," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing. My mind is still buzzing after last night's double-bill of Lost and Damages.

Pay cabler HBO has renewed drama Big Love, about the polygamist Henrickson clan, for a fourth season. Production will begin later this year for a 2010 launch. "The stellar reviews and solid viewership this season confirm that this is a signature series for HBO," said Michael Lombardo, president of programming at HBO. "The series keeps getting better and better." (I have to agree with him: this season has been absolutely amazing!) Once DVR, encores, and VOD ratings are added in to Big Love's initial airing, viewing figures soar to about 5 million, on par with HBO's True Blood. (Variety, Hollywood Reporter)

Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J are said to be in final talks to star in CBS' untitled NCIS spin-off. Chris O'Donnell would play Callen, a man capable of changing into various different personas with ease, while LL Cool J would play former Navy SEAL Sam Hanna. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Pushing Daisies' Anna Friel is said to be in high demand this pilot season. Friel has received three offers so far: ABC drama pilots Eastwick and I, Claudia and CBS drama pilot House Rules. Her former co-star Lee Pace was said to have been offered pilot but declined. (Hollywood Reporter)

Meanwhile, Friel's other Pushing Daisies co-star Swoosie Kurtz has been cast in ABC's Desperate Housewives, where she will play a potential love interest for one Wisteria Lane resident. Kurtz's first episode of Desperate Housewives is slated to air in March; she'll then be seen as high society dame Millie on NBC's Heroes in April. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

ABC will launch MRC's Bob Saget family comedy Surviving Suburbia (originally to air during MRC's Sunday night block on the CW) on Mondays at 9:30 pm, following Dancing with the Stars. Move comes on the heels of ABC's decision to move comedy Samantha Who? to Thursday evenings. Thirteen-episode Surviving Suburbia, starring Bob Saget and Cynthia Stevenson, was created by Kevin Abbott (Reba). (Variety)

Christine Baranski (Mamma Mia!) has been cast in at least three episodes of ABC's Ugly Betty, where she will play the wealthy mother of Betty's new love interest, sports writer Matt (Daniel Eric Gold). Baranaski's first appearance is slated to air in March. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

For the first time, Doctor Who will be filmed in high-definition, beginning with the Easter special, "Planet of the Dead." Move marks the first HD outing for the sci-fi series, although spin-off series Torchwood has been filmed in HD since it first launched. (Digital Spy)

Casting is underway for Serena's new European beau on the CW's Gossip Girl, possibly inspired by Anne Hathaway's real-life ex-boyfriend Raffaello Follieri, who was convicted last fall of wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy charges. Executive producer Stephanie Savage wouldn't confirm the rumor but said that Serena's new love interest Giorgio is "very well-traveled, part of the global elite. He's not a brooding artist like Dan or Aaron Rose. He's definitely a grown-up, and that's something Serena is very attracted to." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Vivica A. Fox (Curb Your Enthusiasm) will host TV Land's eight-episode dating competition series The Cougar, which will premiere on April 15th. And, yes, it's about exactly what you think it is. (Variety)

NBC has delayed the launch of geneology-based reality series Who Do You Think You Are? until the summer. Deal or No Deal will take over the Mondays at 8 pm timeslot, currently occupied by Chuck, for three weeks beginning May 4th. (Futon Critic)

Imagine TV is said to be looking for its next Arrested Development. The shingle, headed by Brian Grazer and David Nevins, is developing FOX single-camera comedy pilot The Chairman of Chatsworth, written by Dan Palladino (Gilmore Girls), about a lawyer with a "questionable moral compass" who is said to be loosely based on Grazer's own father. Also in development: an animated series based on Angry Little Girls (based on Lela Lee's comic) with Simpsons vet Josh Weinstein, the redeveloped Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office at FOX (it was originally shot as a pilot for ABC in 2007), and NBC comedy pilot Parenthood. (Variety)

Battlestar Galactica's Kate Vernon talks to The Daily News about her role on the sci-fi series and hinted at the scope of the series finale. "None of us saw the ending coming," Vernon said in an interview. "I would just say, erase your mind of any expectations and really watch the show with an open mind. So much is to be revealed." (The New York Daily News)

The House of Representatives has voted to approve the DTV delay, shifting the transition from Feb. 17th to June 12th, and has sent the bill to President Obama to sign. The delay, according to White House spokesperson Amy Brundage, "means that millions of Americans will have the time they need to prepare for the conversion." (TV Week)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Kranz Talks "Dollhouse" Attic, Zahn and Dickens Circle HBO's "Treme," Faux Peacock Fall Schedule, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

The Los Angeles Times has an interesting and revealing Q&A with Dollhouse's Fran Kranz, who plays techie Topher on the FOX drama, which launches next Friday. Kranz reveals, "There is a place in the Dollhouse called the Attic that stores failed Dolls and personalities. There’s like a whole warehouse where actual bodies are kept." As for the, uh, unconvention post-order redevelopment surrounding Dollhouse, Kranz is forthcoming. "I’ve read things where Joss has said that... Fox wanted to cut to the chase," he said. "They thought there was too much on the characters within the Dollhouse and the conflict and mythology of the Dollhouse, as opposed to seeing what the Dollhouse does on a day-to-day basis. In one sense, I think it’s a good thing. I think it’s important for the audience to define the Dollhouse before they’re introduced to the rest of the conflicts and stories." (Los Angeles Times)

Steve Zahn (Sunshine Cleaning) is in talks to star in HBO's drama pilot Treme, from creator David Simon (The Wire); he would play Davis Rogan, a radio DJ, musician, and New Orleans native with anger management issues. Meanwhile, Kim Dickens (Deadwood) has joined the cast, where she will play a chef and restarateur involved in an strained relationship with Zahn's Davis. Already cast in the project: Clark Peters, Wendell Pierce, and Khandi Alexander. (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC has cut the episodic order for its midseason drama Cupid to seven episodes. (Televisionary)

The Jonas Brothers will host a night of CW programming including 90210 and Privileged on Tuesday, February 10th that will also offer a sneak peek of their new film Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience. They'll be joined on screen by 90210's Jessica Lowndes. (via press release)

Sofia Vergara (Dirty Sexy Money) will co-star in ABC comedy pilot An American Family, which will be directed by Jason Winer (This Might Hurt) and Stephen Graham (Gangs of New York) has been cast in Martin Scorsese's HBO drama pilot Boardwalk Empire, where he will play a young Al Capone. Elsewhere, Yves Simoneau (The 4400) will direct ABC sci-fi pilot V, Dean Parisot will direct ABC's I, Claudia; Jeremy Podeswa (The Pacific) will direct ABC drama pilot Empire State; and Eden Sher (Weeds) has been cast in ABC comedy pilot The Middle. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sarah Shahi's pregnancy will impact the plot on her NBC drama Life, according to Kristin Dos Santos. Showrunner Rand Ravich has told her that Shahi's Dani Reese and Charlie Crews (Damian Lewis) will be split up when Reese gets a new job on an FBI-LAPD joint task force. "[Sarah's pregnancy] is a challenge," said Ravich. "Episodic television is a grueling schedule, and Sarah and Damian were practically in every scene together, and we certainly can't expect Sarah to work 15-hour days... So we were able to carve Sarah out of the main story a little bit—keeping her always related to Crews and always involved with Crews—and just give her some relief as well." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Nikki Finke has a sneak peek at Vanity Fair's upcoming Hollywood Issue, which has a tongue-in-cheek look at a possible Fall 2009 NBC schedule. My favorites: the combo of A Bunch of Universal Pictures Trailers and JetBlue's Snack-Options Screen on Wednesdays and Weak Link Sitcom T.B.A on after My Name is Earl on Thursdays. (Deadline Hollywood Daily)

Chef and frequent Top Chef guest judge Eric Ripert has landed his own ten-episode series, Avec Eric, which will air nationwide on PBS stations this fall. (Hollywood Reporter)

E! has ordered eight episodes of Kendra, a docusoap spin-off of Girls Next Door which will focus on Kendra Wilkinson's life after she left the Playboy Mansion and got engaged to Eagles receiver Hank Baskett. The cabler plans to launch the series this summer and has also ordered another season of Girls Next Door, which it plans to air this fall. (Variety)

Season Two of Mad Men will launch on BBC Four on Tuesday, February 10th. (BBC)

The second episode of TNT's new drama series Trust Me landed only 1.9 million viewers, representing an audience loss of 65 percent of lead-in The Closer. The ratings also showed a staggering drop from the premiere episode's 3.4 million viewers. Elsewhere, HBO's Big Love increased its viewership by 29 percent of the season premiere up against the Super Bowl. (Variety)

Lifetime has renewed weight-loss reality series DietTribe for a second season, with eight episodes slated to air this summer. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Little Boxes: Birth, Death, and Everything in Between on "Big Love"

I originally watched last night's episode of Big Love ("Prom Queen") late last year but when I rewatched it last evening, I was once again struck by the episode's beauty and grace and the undercurrent of denial and despair that runs beneath its surface.

Written by Eileen Myers and directed by David Petrarca, "Prom Queen" ranks as one of my favorite episodes of Big Love to date, as it escalates the intersecting storylines of Roman's trial, Nicki's deception at the DA's office, the fractured marriage between Joey, Wanda, and Kathy, the murderous standoff between Lois and Frank, and some long-buried secrets about just what happened to Bill's sister Maggie... and what may have happened to Nicki as a teenager on the compound.

The episode is really at its heart about the nature of denial, the cardboard boxes that the characters all shove into the back of their closets in their own way. For Sarah, it's the belief that she can push her troubles out of her mind and have one shining moment of happiness by attending the prom with Frankie, Ben, and Heather. For Nicki, it's that she can pretend she wasn't forcibly married at the age of 15 to a man she hated. Ana attempts to reconcile her need to control something with her desire to join the Henricksons in plural marriage, while Barb tried to endure the spite of her sister in order to secure her family's future but finds that she just can't stay silent about the grandfather clock she was promised. Margene scrubs the house in order to distract herself from dealing with her mother's death and puts Ginger's ashes on the top shelf of her closet. Out of sight, out of mind, right?

And yet that's not always the case. Things have a nasty habit of resurfacing at the most unexpected of times. Lois can't bring herself to speak when Bill demands to know the truth about Maggie's suicide, a secret she had carried inside for decades, and breaks down on the phone with Bill; it's a moment of supreme clarity and relief for a woman prone to scheming and conniving rather than telling the truth. (That she happens to do while in the process of suffocating her no-good husband Frank is just the icing on the cake.) Key prosecution witness Kathy is forced to speak out about her marriage to Ron at the age of 14 and how she pleaded with Roman to not force her to consummate her marriage before she was ready.

Wanda unearths one of Nicki's own secrets: that she too was forcibly wed to J.J., a man she loathed, when she was 15, though Roman later unsealed her. That she kept this from Bill only further highlights her shame over the incident; she still can't bring herself to admit that it actually happened. And yet, posing as Margene in her job at the DA's office, Nicki comes face to face with something that can't be denied: her presence in the compound's joy books. The look of supreme sadness and humiliation when she sees herself in those pages was absolutely heartbreaking. The devotion to which she practices her religion is clearly at odds with her own experiences as an adherent... and it gives new meaning and weight to her own manipulations, clearly an effort to exert some control over a world that has restricted her own liberty. Obedience is clearly not the freedom that Roman preaches. And the tears she sheds in the arms of her boss Ray (The Office's Charles Esten) are painfully real.

Meanwhile, poor Wanda can't bare the thought that Joey loves Kathy more than her and attempts to drown herself in a scene that's set to the most haunting of piano music, a theme that turns up several times in this heartbreaking installment.

I am glad that Sarah told Ben that she was pregnant in a poignant scene set to Alphaville's "Forever Young" that has remained with me the past few months since I first saw the episode. The look of serenity on Sarah's face as she tells Ben not to say anything and just let her enjoy the moment as the sun comes up is clearly at odds with the difficult decisions that lie ahead for Sarah. The sun might be coming up but it looks like there will definitely be darkness ahead for the most tragic figures in the series.

As for Bill, he says that he's "moved mountains" in order to keep his family out of Roman's trial, even going so far as to tamper with a witness by putting Rhonda on a bus. But when faced with the truth about Maggie and about Nicki, there's no way that he can deny what's actually going on: that this trial isn't about staying silent and pretending that he's not involved but by admitting that Roman is evil and his actions illegal and morally wrong. He tells Kathy that one person can't hope to bring down Roman's corrupt and venal rule over Juniper Creek but all it takes is one person to stand up and tell the truth. And at the episode's end, Bill realizes that he has to help Kathy and undo the wrong that he has himself gotten entangled in.

All in all, "Prom Queen" is an exceptional installment of Big Love that advances the plot of the last three seasons, answers some long-standing questions, and looks towards the future and the sunrise.

Do we think that Lois went through with her murder of Frank? Will Sarah attempt to keep the baby? Will Kathy Marquart make it to the witness stand? Did Wanda truly mean to kill herself in the pool? Will Roman go free and plot revenge against the Henricksons? Will Ana make the leap with Bill and the wives? Discuss.

Next week on Big Love ("On Trial"), Nicki is tested by her devotion to her father and her commitment to obey Bill; Bill urges the DA to offer protective custody to Kathy and Rhonda and offers a truce with Alby; Lois turns to Bill for sanctuary after fleeing the compound; Adaleen track down Rhonda; Barb asks her mother for financial help; Sarah considers her options.

Schemers and Dreamers: Lucky Charms, Cancer Scares, and Brood Mares on "Big Love"

Is it just me or is this season of HBO's Big Love shaping up to be the very best one the series has done to date? Taut, suspenseful, and emotionally resonant, Season Three has ramped up the drama and tension that have been slowly building over the last two seasons; every episode is a paragon of subtle narrative storytelling and serialized sizzle.

While you've already read my advance review of Season Three's first three episodes of Big Love, you've now seen the third season's second episode ("Empire") last night so we can get discuss specifics.

Last night's superlative episode of Big Love, written by series creators Will Scheffer and Mark V. Olsen, featured a mix of both good and bad news for the Henricksons as Bill made his case for the Indian casino, the family started dating Ana as a group, Roman blackmailed Bill, Barb received news about her health, and Sarah made a shocking discovery. So, just another day for everyone's favorite polygamist clan then?

Nikki. I cannot believe that Nikki is deliberately trying not to get pregnant and is willfully deceiving both Bill and her fellow sister wives by secretly taking birth control pills. Interestingly, Nikki tells Adeleen that she saw how Adeleen resented her children by making her more mother than wife to her father but is that really why Nikki is going to such lengths? She's always been extremely self-serving (though I do have to say that her fear and concern for Barb's health was genuine and heartfelt) and manipulative but also been portrayed as a true believer in their religion, which states that the purpose of wives is to expand the family. So what's the real reason? Is it a quiet form of rebellion? A way for Nikki to gain control over her destiny and her life by not becoming a brood mare? What do you think?

Margene. Even after becoming Bill's good luck charm with Weber Gaming and finding a calling for herself in sales, Margene proves that she is far more self-sacrificing than Nikki as she tells Barb that she'll put her professional life on hold to become a mother again. The scene in the fertility clinic between her and Barb was as touching as it was sad. Their sisterhood is meant to be supportive and nurturing and each to make sacrifices for the other. That she would choose to expand their family once more so soon after giving birth to a baby while Nikki goes to great lengths not to get pregnant really shows major character growth for Margene.

Barb. I'm really happy that Barb isn't facing another cancer reoccurence and that the diagnosis was negative. Like Margene, she put her family before herself, pushing Bill to make his intentions to date Ana clear in case something should happen to her and concealing her health scare from everyone--even Bill--so as not to jeopardize the fragile balance of the family at a more than difficult time. The look of sadness on Barb's face when she realized that she would have to tell Bill she was in the hospital was profound... as was the look of dawning realization when she realized just what she had done in pursuing Ana, even though she herself wasn't sick after all. That final shot of Barb, surrounded by the family's children, her sister wives, Bill, and Ana but standing alone, was absolutely heartbreaking as she learned that she wasn't sick but realized that she had altered the fabric of their family for no reason. It doesn't point to good times ahead for Boss Lady.

Sarah. Well, now we know another reason why Sarah is so desperate to get out of Utah and away from her family and Scott: she's pregnant. Dumping the news that she wants to attend school in Arizona (despite the family being strapped with the casino business and Weber), Sarah then breaks up with Scott outside the creepy runaway home (a.k.a. The Butt Hut) and is later seen crying while holding a copy of a pregnancy book. Poor Sarah. She, along with Barb, have got to be the most tragic figures in this story and I don't think that the Henricksons are going to be very supportive when they learn that their teenage daughter is carrying her boyfriend's child. Not good.

The Butt Hut. How entirely creepy was that house for compound exiles/runaways? I was surprised that Sarah would want to go there with her friends and Frankie but I didn't quite expect to see what they encounter there: a mix of "pure" girls waiting out the time until they are eighteen and can return to the compound and the misfit boys kicked off the compound, clearly engaging in drugs, alcohol, and sex. And, quelle surprise, Granny herself--Wanda--happens to live there in a room decorated with a collage of photographs of herself.

Roman. I can't believe that Roman would threaten to expose Bill's family yet again if he didn't deign to become his Errand Boy. Yes, Roman is against the wall and facing not only man's justice but his own mortality, but he proved once again that his protection of Nikki only goes so far as his own self-preservation. And of course it all comes down, once again, to schemer and opportunist Rhonda Volmer...

Lois. I literally gasped when Frank threw Lois against the wall and began to strangle her. Their messed up realtionship has been at the heart of Big Love since the very first episode and Bill's entire character has been shaped by Frank's decision to kick him off of the compound as a teenager. That thirty years of betrayal and rage would be crystalized in this one moment (complete with Wanda blindly thrusting in the air with a chef's knife) was absolutely perfect... and that Frank would be knocked to the ground with a shovel held by Frankie's mom only fitting. That scene of Frank bound and gagged in Lois' basement definitely points towards a reckoning coming between them and if I were Frank I'd be very, very scared.

Don. Poor Don. Bill's never been very supportive of him throughout the last two seasons (or very nice to him) but he made up for it this week, lending his old friend his support and trust when he told Don to seek the bank loan for the casino, after two of Don's wives ran off with their kids. The hug that they share before Ben's flag-raising ceremony was touching and heartfelt. I'm glad that the series' writers are dealing with Don and Peg's relationship more and I am interested to see where they take the former polygamists now that they are forced into monogamy against their will.

Wanda. Bill's sister-in-law is clearly becoming unhinged once again, as she threatens to harm Kathy if Alby doesn't reassign her... but Alby has unknowingly tipped his hand when he tells Wanda that he will be very displeased (and even send her someplace far away) if anything happens to Kathy. Wanda's already suspicious about what Joey and Kathy are whispering about and she knows that the Jane Doe defendants against Roman Grant are being protected. I do think she's put two and two together and realized that Kathy is going to testify against Roman... but will she out her sister wife?

Ana. I think it's abundantly clear that the life of plural marriage doesn't suit Ana, as much as she might claim she's open to it. The two "group dates" that the family goes on with Ana are both a disaster. The first time she's questioned about "bone meal" and other bizarre topics, though she does get, as Nikki says, "the front seat and endless refills" of soda. The second time, she's deserted by everyone at the communal table, alone in the shared backyard. I just don't see a future for her with the family, no matter how hard everyone tries to win her over.

Best line of the evening: "Wanda, why are you massaging that bird's anus with a Q-Tip?" - Lois

Next week on Big Love ("Prom Queen"), Bill attempts to bribe Rhonda into going underground at Roman's behest; Bill's commitment towards Ana is tested; Margene receives some disturbing news about Ginger; Wanda reveals a long-buried secret about Nicki's past.

Talk Back: Season Premiere of HBO's "Big Love" ("Block Party")

I don't know about you but I've definitely missed HBO's Big Love, which has been missing from the airwaves for far too long.

You've all had a chance to read my advance review of the third season premiere of Big Love ("Block Party") from last month, in which I tried my hardest not to give away any major spoilers. But it was definitely difficult when talking about an episode that contained as many intriguing plot twists as this one, in which murder attempts are made, boys are thrown off the compound, and a personal sacrifice is made for the greater good. (And believe me when I say that you haven't seen anything yet: the twists that are coming will blow you away.)

Now that the season premiere of Big Love--written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer--has aired, we can talk about the latest complications in the Henrickson clan's lives... and what these latest twists might spell out for the future of the polygamist family.

Barb. I was shocked to see that Barb's cancer may have returned and even more shocked that she decided to keep this news a secret both from Bill and her sister wives. Rather than tell them that she might once more be sick, Barb opted instead to invest her energy in welcoming a potential fourth wife into the family. Sure, her reasoning makes sense: they need to expand their family in the afterlife and a fourth will allow them to do it. But really Boss Lady is being pragmatic: if she dies, she wants to make sure that Bill is taken care of and the best way to do so is not to disturb the already-fragile balance of the family.

I don't think that a season ago Barb would have gone so far as to drop in on Ana and tell her that they wanted to start to formally date her (hell, she was considering leaving the family at the start of Season Two after her outing at the governor's ball), but her current situation has precipitated her action. And the sad look on her face when Sarah railed against her for even considering a fourth said it all.

Nikki. While Barb surprised me by being so matter-of-fact about the addition of a fourth wife to their family, I was stunned by Nikki's act of utter selflessness at the block party. Given her devotion to the principle, it was a stunning about-face to see Nikki stand up on the roof and publicly denounce the compound and her father. While Nikki is often portrayed as selfish and manipulative, it's perhaps the single most genuine act of support and compassion she's performed for her family on the series to date. Even though she's actually betraying them by secretly working for Adeleen at the DA's office, gathering evidence on the four Jane Does preparing to testify against Roman. And she had Adeleen's help in doctoring a fake driver's license registered to Margene. Nikki is playing a very dangerous game and it's only a matter of time before all of her lies catch up with her.

Margene. Don't you just want to hug Margene? She's slowly transformed into a more than capable member of the family unit and she came to Bill's aid in the meeting with Jerry and LaDonna by reciting the Indian words she had so carefully practiced ("We are a peaceful people"). I think we'll see Margene's influence on Bill continue to grow as he looks to expand his business... and hopefully see her gain an ally in Ana. The smile on her face at the episode's end when Ana comes up to them was priceless.

Alby. I had no idea that Alby's illicit rendezvous at the rest stop would become an attempt on his life and the scene was so terrifying and shocking that I was horrified but found that I couldn't look away. Everything--the lighting, the filthy water in the sink, the lack of a score--all contributed to the scene of absolute dread and rage. He surely would have been dead if those kids hadn't wandered in and interrupted his killer. The look of horror on his face as he realizes his brush with death is only later trumped by his expression of understanding as Adeleen drives by him on the road. Yes, Alby knows that his own mother tried to have him killed. And that knowledge terrifies him.

Sarah. Clearly, Sarah is not dealing very well with the latest changes to her family and the mere possibility that her father could take a fourth wife--and that her mother would willingly allow this to happen--is perhaps more than she can bear. When she confesses to Heather that she'll die if she stays in Utah, you can't help but feel that this is more than just a histrionic threat: it's deadly serious. Of all the characters on Big Love, Sarah continues to remain the most tragic, caught in a series of compromises and choices that she had no part in, forced to remain an outsider even among her family. You can't help but feel for her.

Frankie. I'm worried about the reappearance of Frankie at the Henricksons, given the already bitter rivalry existing between Bill and his father Frank. Kicking 15-year-old Frankie off of the compound for kissing a girl, Frank swears that Bill is no better than him and that his fancy wives in the suburbs are nothing "modern but broken." We all saw what having Rhonda at the houses did to the family, so I am not sure that having Frankie there will prove to be much better, save for the fact that no one will come looking for him. But by inviting him in, Bill has taken a stand against his father and the Henricksons already have enough enemies to contend with. Still, it will provide a really great opportunity to see how being kicked off of the compound affected Bill as a character by seeing it unfold once again via Frankie.

Jodean. I can't believe that Kathy has a twin sister and that she had the bad fate to be sealed to Frank, who is going to do his best to destroy her spirit. Seeing her forced to obey his every instruction--including helping the "girls dig out the new sewer line"--sent shivers down my spine. But how fantastic is it that the always luminous Mireille Enos now gets to play two fantastic roles? I'm hoping we see more of both Kathy and Jodean in the future.

Lois. She might rant and rave and kick up a fuss (along with more than her share of intrigues) but Lois really did believe that having a boy kicked off the compound is always hardest on the mother. For all of her tempest-in-a-teapot scheming, Lois does often speak pearls of wisdom, at least in her own mind. And I think that she's had to suffer more than her fair share of burdens over the years.

Best line of the evening: "These are good lawyers, honey. These men worked for Ronald Reagan." - Adeleen

But I am curious to know what you thought of the season premiere. Did you get choked up when Nikki put aside her beliefs and protected the family by making her rooftop speech to the neighborhood? Were you shocked as all hell when that guy tried to kill Alby? Did you think Bill would sleep with Ana? And were you surprised that Ana came around to the sister wives' way of thinking? Talk back here.

Next week on Big Love ("Empire"), Bill and the sister wives attempt to date Ana as a group; Barb anxiously awaits her test results; Scott offers to join Sarah in Arizona, an offer with which she's not too pleased; Frank visits Lois with his new wife.

Love is All Around Us: "Big Love" Creators and Stars Talk Season Three

HBO's family drama-with-a-twist Big Love returns this Sunday for a third season positively overflowing with long-buried secrets. (You can read my advance review of the first three episodes of Season Three here.)

Speaking at last week's Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour, Big Love creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer and stars Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny, and Ginnifer Goodwin had a lot to say about Season Three, the hiatus following the writers strike, and the P-word: polygamy.

Several returning series were greatly impacting by the timing and length of the writers strike, which lasted 100 days beginning in November 2007. Big Love, which was gearing up for its third season on HBO was one such series. Returning to work after the strike ended, Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer decided to start fresh and write new scripts rather than use the several that had been broken before the strike.

"It's always good to have more time and more time and more time to digest story and to reconsider choices made," said Scheffer. "It makes the show stronger, deeper, better to have a couple of goes at initial assumptions. And so it was a blessing in that way, a mixed blessing because we were late coming on back to our fans, but I think that that little interim period where we weren't writing, when we were just sort of protesting and showering and such, that we could have this time to breathe into the characters and the stories even more than we would have if we had just gone on our straight route."

Arriving back on HBO after a year and a half off the air, Big Love definitely brings some added tension and drama with its third season and has the characters going through some very big changes, and not for the first time.

Bill Paxton, who plays family patriarch Bill Henrickson, says that his perception of his character has changed over the course of the series' three seasons.

"Oh, absolutely, it's changed," said Paxton. "I've grown to admire the character I play greatly. He's a man after my own heart in terms of what he's taken on to try to keep this family together and to grow his family. And I find that it's been a real challenge playing the part, but it's been very rewarding."

Paxton admits that initially the series' trappings of polygamy were a little unsettling, as does Ginnifer Goodwin, who plays Bill's third wife Margene. "I think all of us, of course, assumed going into it that in some way we would be [promoting] polygamy, and polygamy is [just] the setting," said Goodwin. "This is a character-driven story. It's about a love that works, and I think once we all got past what everyone has now phrased as the 'ick factor,' and once we all--I think within the first season--came to understand as the reasons why each character came into this lifestyle, the polygamy sort of became, not an insignificant detail because it's clearly forever our characters' obstacle in how we live in the outside world, but... just the dynamics of a family love that none of us have ever experienced."

Jeanne Tripplehorn, who plays Bill's first wife, the oft-put-upon Barb, said that her initial concerns about the project weren't related to polygamy, per se, but about making the characters as deep and complex as possible.

"It was how to make it believable and more rich because when I was originally approached about this show about a polygamist family called Big Love, I thought it was a comedy," admitted Tripplehorn. "And then, as I read it, I couldn't believe the depth, and when I originally came to it, it was just how to make believable and how do I relate to this. And now, you know, having finished Season Three, it's just really nuanced and richer. I mean, I still have questions concerning Barbara and why she stays or why she doesn't, why she-- Well, there's so many things I can't say because I don't want to give it away. But it's not about polygamy anymore."

"She's kind of like a whirling dervish," said Chloë Sevigny of her character, the manipulative Nikki. "She's in constant turmoil, definitely, and she's the character that's kind of wrenched most by this arrangement in a funny kind of way and split by the two worlds that she has to exist in between her married, family life and her family-family life. And the conflict there has always been strong from the beginning and before the beginning of the series, and it continues to deepen in ways that are really exciting."

One of the reasons that the show continues to mine its initial premise is through its creation of several worlds: that of Roman and Alby and the compound, the public face that the Henrickson clan puts on to the rest of society, the sphere of domesticity that they create, and within that the world of the sister wives, an unpredictable and often shifting sea of alliances. It's what Olsen refers to as "wives' world," and it often provides one of the greatest sources of tension for the series.

"Whether it's happy and well-adjusted or in conflict, [the wives] have become a unit that's very forceful, and the scenes with the three women and Bill tend to be scenes where your jaw drops, when you see the actors interrelating and how quickly they fall into being this unit," said Scheffer. "It's bizarre... So when we're working and they just fall into being this family, it's really awesome."

"There's also a very special province of this show that we kind of call 'wives' world,' and it exists below Bill's radar, when he's not around, and it's the three of them together," agreed Olsen. "I think it's a very special rich dynamic that we tried to tap even deeper this year and certainly give more air time to. Because within wives' world, you can have these rich, rich encounters between these three that goes from two seconds into it, 'Nicki, will you please shut up,' and she means it, to an embrace ten seconds later. It's a rich tapestry of relationship and affection and resentment that we call family."

Still, despite the deepness of the characters and a shortened run (Season Three will only run ten episodes), it's not an easy series to produce. "It's gruelling to do ten episodes," said Scheffer. "It's grueling to do twelve even more, and we consider ourselves lucky that we're not doing 22 because I think we'd all be dead."

"I check into a sanitarium at the end of each season for about a month," joked Paxton. "Then I'm ready to go back to work."

Sevigny agrees. "The consistency of the HBO schedule sometimes can make it hard for us to find other projects because we're not sure when we'll be available," she said. "The timing has been quite difficult."

Still one can't argue that the series has captured the imagination of its fiercely loyal audience. "The show, it's very contemporary," mused Paxton. "In terms of HBO, it's a groundbreaking show. Why I got involved in this was the writing and the concept were original, and I'd never seen this show [before]. It's not another forensic show. It's not another hospital show. It's not another cop/detective drama. It really is a unique, groundbreaking show. It has a lot to do with tolerance and humanity and compassion, but there's no message to be hit over the head here. They've made it like a really good souffle; you can kind of really savor these characters. It's been probably the greatest role I've ever gotten to play. I've never done an ongoing show. We have the most amazing cast. It's been really exciting."

So what can we expect for Season Three? "This year we got a lot of new actors who've come to join us," hinted Paxton. "We're going to kind of let them be surprises as they come along... , Oh, boy, there's a lot of stuff coming that goes back and fills in some of [Bill's] story. A lost boy shows up and I have to deal with this kid. He turns out to be a brother of mine. I'm not giving too much away here. You see Bill looking around the environment of this kid, and he's looking back through this kid to where he came from, too. I think that Mark and Will and the writers have found, really, a more clever way to shade in the backstory."

"You'll be surprised at what characters have hidden from their family, from themselves," said Scheffer. "With this kind of show where it's really character-based and really complicated emotionally, there are deep wells of emotions and secrets and feelings that you just begin to discover. The characters discover them. The writers discover them. So, it's all of sudden like, let's go 150 percent and go further than anyone ever thought we should possibly go and we'll see what happens because we know there's going to be a well to go."

Just don't expect any flashbacks as the writers delve head-first into the characters' backstories.

"I think we decided that a flashback was not really in the vocabulary of the show we were making," said Scheffer of their decision not to do flashbacks (other than in those three Season Two promotional vignettes), "so there was kind of like a desire maybe to dramatize that period in the family's life. We felt we had to do it in the present and dramatize the past in the present."

"We've been in no rush to nail some of that backstory, to tell you the truth," agreed Olsen. "I mean, we knew, broadly speaking, that Bill and Barb had that first marriage and then Barb got sick, and then somehow through that process when Nicky came to stay with them, something happened and Barb acquiesced and Bill moved forward, and the first step was made in a polygamous marriage. The finer, finer dramatic points: Was Barb shoved into this? Did she lead the cause? Was Bill repentant? Did he feel guilty? They're emotional pieces which can be, over time, quite explosive. We've really kind of taken time to feel our way through."

Paxton agrees: "I don't even think my character knows what he is capable of, and because of his background, he could be capable of anything. After three seasons of acting in this series, to me it feels like the root system of this tree are still spreading out. I feel like there's a lot of places we've got to go yet and there is a lot of backstory to be explored, but I like the way they're doing it. Flashbacks, I think, are kind of a cheap device and kind of a cliché device at this point in the filmmaking game."

But even with the dramatic stakes being risen, Big Love is still at its heart about family. "Every story has to go back into it being about marriage [and family]," said Scheffer. "We won't do something that's lazy and kind of plot-driven if it doesn't come back and hit the theme of marriage and family. We have very strong guidelines on what we do. So even like the kind of bigger stories about Roman and about the kind of darker side of polygamy and the morality of polygamy, all have to also feed back into our family or characters or we won't touch them. We want to always have the theme alive. There's no glib stories about polygamy. There's no easy answers about it. We're always trying to dig into that material deep, as well."

Season Three of Big Love begins Sunday night at 9 pm ET/PT on HBO.

True Love and False Prophets: An Advance Review of Season Three of HBO's "Big Love"

“The most distressing thing that can happen to a prophet is to be proved wrong. The next most distressing thing is to be proved right.” - Aldous Huxley

Truer words were never spoken, especially in the case of HBO's drama series Big Love, which returns next month for an explosive third season. When we last saw the cast of the pay cabler's provocative series, Bill (Bill Paxton) was considering taking a fourth wife even as he was embattled from multiple sides in a war with the Grants and the Greens. Meanwhile, Roman Grant (Harry Dean Stanton) had been arrested after attempting to return to the compound following his attempted assassination at the hands of Hollis Green's followers. He had been set up by his power-hungry son Alby (Matt Ross), who like his father before him, had usurped control of Juniper Creek and laid claim to being the polygamist sect's new prophet.

Roughly set six months after the action of the second season finale (which aired in 2007), Season Three of Big Love ramps up the tension by using Roman Grant's upcoming trial as a ripped-from-the-headlines thread that weaves its way through a phenomenal third season, while the Henrickson clan tries to keep a low profile and distance themselves from Roman's case even as they find themselves sucked in against their will. Long buried family secrets are unearthed, vengeance is taken, and vendettas and murder plots become part of everyday dealings, even as the polygamist Henricksons try harder than ever to blend into the neighborhood.

I had the opportunity to watch the first three brilliant installments of Big Love's third season last night and could not shake them out of my head. I've always had a fondness for this sophisticated series, which deals with the trials of marriage and family in a most unique way, but I've never been as captivated and enthralled by a drama series like this since The Wire.

Each of the three episodes of Big Love provided for review is pitch-perfect in every respect, offering a glimpse into a secret life that most of us don't share whilst making its characters absolutely sympathetic by having them engage in a quotidian suburban existence filled with block parties, chores, and children's school events. The Henricksons' polygamist arrangement pales in comparison to the lives of the more radicalized followers of their belief system: the Grants, the Greens, and other members of the Juniper Creek compound, including Bill's mother Lois (Grace Zabriskie), his brother Joey (Shawn Doyle), Joey's poisoner wife Wanda (Melora Walters), and his new would-be bride Kathy (Mireille Enos). The Waltons this isn't.

So what can we expect from Season Three of Big Love? Let's discuss.

Season Three finds the Henricksons at a crossroads. Bill's acquistion of Weber Gaming has produced a windfall for the clan, even as business at Cost Plus is drying up due to the economic recession. Bill's next target? Partnering with a Utah Indian tribe to build a Mormon-friendly casino right over the border, an hour's distance from Salt Lake City. Even as he faces added pressure from building this gambling business with partner Don (Joel McKinnon Miller), who faces his own battles in Season Three, Bill finds himself further drawn to Serbian waitress Ana (Branka Katic), whom he intends to make his fourth wife.

But will Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn) stand for the addition of a fourth to her already burgeoning family? That's the real question but Barb begins to worry about her own future when it appears that her cancer, in remission for seven years, may have returned. Terrified about the future of her family, Barb begins to embrace The Principle and reaches out to Ana, making formal gestures of wanting the family to begin dating her collectively. Ana, for her part, does not seem ready to commit to the rigors of plural marriage and complications quickly ensue. Look for a truly touching scene between Barb and Ana in the third episode ("Prom Queen") that is a testament to both the acting prowess of Tripplehorn and Katic and the quiet power that the series' writers manage to find in the smallest of scenes.

Second wife Nicki (Chloë Sevigny) meanwhile is forced to make a stunning sacrifice in the season opener ("Block Party") even as she faces added pressure to conceive another child and she deceives her sister wives and Bill from the true reasons why she opts to take a part-time job. Hint: it's not for the reasons she gives (i.e., debt) but rather something closer to her father's trial situation, something involving the identities of the Jane Does ready to testify against Roman Grant on the charges of forced matrimony and forcible copulation. And something very unexpected about Nicki's own past comes tumbling out in the wake of yet another family tragedy (and a luckily averted one to boot) in "Prom Queen." To say that this news changes our perceptions of Nicki and her past is a major understatement; in fact, it sheds a whole new light onto why Nicki is as manipulative and screwed up as she is.

Third wife Margene (Ginnifer Goodman) has already given birth to her baby and continues to try to force an eternal bond between Bill and Ana, her only real friend and ally. She also discovers that she has a knack for salesmanship, as she begins to take a larger role within Weber Gaming and becomes Bill's good luck charm. But will Margene's innate outspoken brashness be a positive or a negative in business dealings? And how will the sunny Margene recover from a crippling tragedy that leaves her in an utter state of denial? Hmmm...

Meanwhile, oldest daughter Sarah (Amanda Seyfried) continues to walk her own path as she attempts to pull away from her family's polygamist beliefs, continuing her relationship with Scott (Aaron Paul) and looking to attend college away from her family in Arizona... even as this comes as news to her best friend Heather (Tina Majorino), with whom she planned to attend the U. Episode Two, "Empire," features a shocking twist for Sarah, which I didn't see coming at all. And one of the most heartbreaking moments of the series to date, set to Alphaville's "Forever Young," occurs between Sarah and her believer brother Ben (Douglas Smith) at the very end of the third episode. Just what it's about, as the siblings watch the sunrise for the last time before life changes inexorably, I won't say but the scene is gut-wrenching, understated, and beautiful.

What else can I reveal? Look for Lois and Frank's relationship to take a twisted turn in the second and third episodes; the truth about Bill's sister Maggie, who killed herself during Bill's exile from the compound, comes out in the third episode; Adaleen (Mary Kay Place) plots in pursuit of her own brand of justice; Bill is faced with his own past repeating itself when his father Frank kicks one of his sons, Frankie, off the compound; Alby runs into some trouble in a public bathroom (ahem); Wanda is pushed to her limits in the face of secrets between Joey and Kathy; Kathy has a twin sister... who is given to Frank as a bride; and Barb squares off with her mother (Ellen Burstyn) and conniving sister Cindy (Judith Hoag) over the issue of their gaming business. All this, and a realization leads the family to take not one but two separate stands against injustice, fear, and tyrrany.

All in all, the first three episodes of Big Love are absolutely bewitching. Alternately dealing with the rigors of everyday life and the infectious stranglehold of cults, Season Three of this remarkable series is a veritable roller coaster of emotions. If these opening installments are any indication of the season ahead, Big Love is poised to take its justly earned place as one of the very best dramatic series on television right now.

Season Three of Big Love launches Sunday, January 18th at 9 pm ET/PT on HBO.

Now My Heart is Full: Season Three Promo for HBO's "Big Love"

January seems to be quite a month for fans of smart serialized drama series, with the returns of ABC's Lost, Sci Fi's Battlestar Galactica, and FX's Damages slated for just after the start of the new year.

But I'm also just as excited (nay, thrilled) for the return of HBO's polygamous family drama Big Love, which in Season Two morphed into one of the most gripping and suspenseful dramas on television.

While it's been positively ages since we last saw the Henrickson clan, I think you'll agree that the provocative promo that HBO has cut for Big Love's third season (set to the music of The Black Keys' "Lies") will get you itching to return to Utah.



While I have absolutely no idea quite what is going on in this moody and atmospheric trailer, I can say that Season Three of Big Love looks to be quite a dark one, especially given the somber (and in some cases sobbing) expressions of several members of the Henrickson family. What is Alby up to? Why does Wanda throw herself downwards? Just who is struggling with that knife?

I can't wait to find out.

Big Love returns to HBO on January 11th.

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.

"Pushing Daisies," "30 Rock," "Damages" Get Some Golden Globe Love

Ah, awards season is upon us, but I can't seem to muster the same enthusiasm this year, what with the strike still going on and no sign of resolution anywhere to turn to.

Still, it's a little bit of comfort to know that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, in handing out their nominations, did decide to include some of my favorite series this year around, including Pushing Daisies, Big Love, 30 Rock, and Damages. So thanks to the HFPA for recognizing creative genius and innovative television. My hat is off to you!

So which series and actors got nominated and which ones got left out in the cold? Below is a list of the TV award categories and their nominations, along with my reactions to the major categories.

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA:

BIG LOVE (HBO)
DAMAGES (FX NETWORKS)
GREY’S ANATOMY (ABC)
HOUSE (FOX)
MAD MEN (AMC)
THE TUDORS (SHOWTIME)

While I loves me some Big Love (and I am absolutely pickled that the HBO polygamy drama has gotten some much-deserved recognition), I do have to shout at the top of my lungs for my near-obsession with FX's serpentine legal thriller Damages, a first-rate Shakespearean drama about about greed, power, and the never-ending battle between might and right.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA:

PATRICIA ARQUETTE - MEDIUM
GLENN CLOSE - DAMAGES
MINNIE DRIVER - THE RICHES
EDIE FALCO - THE SOPRANOS
SALLY FIELD - BROTHERS & SISTERS
HOLLY HUNTER - SAVING GRACE
KYRA SEDGWICK - THE CLOSER

Will The Sopranos' swan song season give Edie Falco yet another statuette to polish? Possibly, but I am hoping that the award gods instead smile down upon the virtuoso performance by Glenn Close this season on Damages, a layered, complex portrayal of a woman so driven by rage and the need to live that she not only destroys everything around her but stamps out little pieces of her own soul. If Patty Hewes doesn't want away a winner when the envelope is opened, I will be a sad, sad boy.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA:

MICHAEL C. HALL - DEXTER
JON HAMM - MAD MEN
HUGH LAURIE - HOUSE
JONATHAN RHYS MEYERS - THE TUDORS
BILL PAXTON - BIG LOVE

While others might push for Mad Men's John Hamm, my thoughts of who I'd like to win this category are Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton, Bill Paxton.

Could I be any clearer?

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL:

30 ROCK (NBC)
CALIFORNICATION (SHOWTIME)
ENTOURAGE (HBO)
EXTRAS (HBO)
PUSHING DAISIES (ABC)

Another difficult category to pick one single favorite from, what with some of my absolutely favorite series--30 Rock, Pushing Daisies, Extras--represented here. I'd absolutely love it if Pushing Daisies got some award-season love (god knows the Emmys wouldn't chance it), but 30 Rock is hands-down the funniest comedy on television right now. Gee, makes me wish that there were separate half-hour and one-hour comedy categories, but at the same time I'm happy that for once Ugly Betty won't walk away with this award. Slight edge to 30 Rock, but Pushing Daisies' quirky sensibilities could win out here. And don't discount Extras, which concludes its hilarious (if all too brief) run this month.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –COMEDY OR MUSICAL:

CHRISTINA APPLEGATE - SAMANTHA WHO?
AMERICA FERRERA - UGLY BETTY
TINA FEY - 30 ROCK
ANNA FRIEL - PUSHING DAISIES
MARY-LOUISE PARKER - WEEDS

America Ferrera will likely win for Ugly Betty, but I'd rather they instead bestow this award on one of two extremely talented actresses: either Pushing Daisies' delightfully wry Anna Friel or 30 Rock's embattled Tina Fey; both turn in gorgeous, hilarious performances, but manage to keep their characters likable and grounded. Come on, HFPA, do something daring and surprise us (pleasantly) for a change...

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL:

ALEC BALDWIN - 30 ROCK
STEVE CARELL - THE OFFICE
DAVID DUCHOVNY - CALIFORNICATION
RICKY GERVAIS - EXTRAS
LEE PACE - PUSHING DAISIES

Wowzers, this is a hard category to pick just one winner. In fact, I'd probably be okay if any of these extremely talented men walk away with the statuette, between 30 Rock's Baldwin, The Office's Carell (here in competition with Extras' Ricky Gervais, no less!), and Californication's Duchovny. But really, I have to ask the HFPA to share some love with the Pie Maker himself, Pushing Daisies' Lee Pace, whose wit, charm, and facility for rapid-fire banter has instantly endeared Ned and his special gift to me.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION:

ROSE BYRNE - DAMAGES
RACHEL GRIFFITHS - BROTHERS & SISTERS
KATHERINE HEIGL - GREY’S ANATOMY
SAMANTHA MORTON - LONGFORD
ANNA PAQUIN - BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE
JAIME PRESSLY - MY NAME IS EARL

Can I just say how sick and tired I am of Katherine Heigl? If I have to sit through one more commercial or product integration message about 27 Dresses, I think I will pull out all of my hair. While some might give the edge to Izzie--Grey's Anatomy is extremely popular around the world--or Rachel Griffiths, I do have to put in a good word for Damages' Rose Byrne. Her performance as naive Ellen Parsons this season was a thing of beauty to watch, as she transformed before our eyes from trusting innocent to scheming shark, all under the guidance and manipulation of Patty Hewes. You can literally pinpoint the moment when her world comes crumbling down around her.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION:

TED DANSON - DAMAGES
KEVIN DILLON - ENTOURAGE
JEREMY PIVEN - ENTOURAGE
ANDY SERKIS - LONGFORD
WILLIAM SHATNER - BOSTON LEGAL
DONALD SUTHERLAND - DIRTY SEXY MONEY

As much as I love Dirty Sexy Money (and Sutherland's surly, introspective magnate Tripp Darling), the edge here definitely goes to Damages' Ted Danson, who turned in a career-defining role as crooked fat cat billionaire Arthur Frobisher, a role that was shaded by uncertainty, fear, loathing, and an innate drive to win his war, no matter who got killed along the way. It's a bravura performance that has all but erased the memory of his last meaty role: womanizing Sam on Cheers, but in the best possible way.

So what do you think of the nominations? Who deserves to win, who got overlooked, and who will ultimately walk away with the top honors? Discuss.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Survivor: China (CBS); The Office (NBC); Smallville (CW); Ugly Betty (ABC); Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? (FOX)

9 pm: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS); 30 Rock/Saturday Night Live Christmas (NBC); Supernatural (CW); Grey's Anatomy (ABC); Don't Forget the Lyrics (FOX)

10 pm: Without a Trace (CBS); Big Shots (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Ugly Betty.

On tonight's repeat episode ("Family/Affair"), Henry returns to Mode but Betty is distracted by Wilhelmina's offer to help solve Ignacio's immigration problem, if Betty keeps shtum about her affair with her bodyguard, an offer that tests Betty's loyalties to Daniel.

8 pm: The Office.

On tonight's repeat episode from Season Three ("Benihana Christmas"), Dunder-Mifflin Scanton ends up split down the middle when an argument among the members of the Party Planning Committee leads to two office Christmas parties. Meanwhile, Michael gets dumped by Carol (and right at the holidays too!) and invites the menfolk of Dunder-Mifflin to down their sorrows.

9 pm: 30 Rock.

On tonight's strangely untitled episode, the staff of TGS with Tracy Jordan celebrates their annual Luda Christmas party, Tracy finds his merriment derailed by a court-mandated alcohol monitoring bracelet, and Liz spends time with her parents and her brother Mitch (Andy Richter), who suffers from memory loss due to a decades-old skiing accident, and Jack receives a surprise visit from his mother Colleen.

9:30-11 pm: Saturday Night Live Christmas.

Because we all could do with some levity right now; take a trip down memory lane as the Not Ready for Primetime Players present some of their most memorable holiday-themed sketches.

Snakes, LD Sidekicks, and Peanut Butter Sandwiches: The "Big Love" Season Finale

Oh my god. I cannot believe we need to wait until next summer to find out what happens next.

I had a feeling just about everything would be resolved on last night's season finale of Big Love ("Oh, Pioneers"), but I can't even articulate the wrenching feeling in my gut as we say goodbye to the Henrickson clan for now. I've been saying for weeks now that I thought that the series' writers would kill someone off in this week's episode, but I am extremely glad to see that they didn't go that route. Though between a vengeful Alby, bed-loving snakes, and that poisoner Wanda (now armed with a fresh means of murder thanks to Lois), it's any wonder that someone didn't end up pushing up daisies by the end of the episode. Whew.

Best line of the night: "You're smothering me!" - Wanda to sister wife Kathy, after she's been told Kathy layed out fresh underwear for her on the bed.

Barb. I was blown away by the fact that Barb outed herself and the family as polygamists to their nosy neighbor Pam. Season One ended with Barb getting outed by Roman at the Beehive Award ceremony and basically withdrawing from everyone and everything around her: she fled the family, enrolled in school, and went deeper into hiding. This time around, she really did reclaim her life and took ownership over her own destiny. There's to be no more hiding, no more cowering in the shadows. It was a brave and bold move (and one, I'm sure, fraught with tons of consequences for Season Three) and one that Barb, as a character, absolutely had to make. As much as we would like to see otherwise, Barb has allied herself body and soul to Bill and his beliefs. So no more "sarcastic" Barb, methinks. I loved how she gripped Margene's hand after delivering the news to Pam, leaning on her sister wife for succor. But we'll see how well Barb takes it when she learns what Ana and Bill got up to in the pantry and how she reacts to the very real possibility that there could soon be a fourth wife...

Nicki. If there's one thing that Nicolette Grant can't do, it's keep her mouth shut. I could not believe that after everything that has happened, Nicki called Alby and alerted him to the fact that Roman was returning to the compound. But, sure enough, Nicki calls Alby to gloat and tell him, you know, that he's going to hell and all. Good lord, I never thought I'd want to see Roman restored to power, but he's a lightweight compared to the Machiavellian maneuvering of Alby.

And, thanks to Nicki, all of Bill's manipulations and plans come to naught. Roman would have let Bill have Weber Gaming and may have even left him alone after Bill kept him safe, but now? Alby's on the warpath and there's no way that Bill can keep Weber (even with Barb on the board of directors).

Roman. Who else thought the scene in which a bewildered Roman shows up in Barb's kitchen and demands Tiny make him a peanut butter sandwich (and some more for the guys at work) was absolutely heartbreaking and hilarious at the same time? I cannot believe that Roman survived (A) three slugs to the body and (B) slow poisoning by animal tranquilizer, only to get arrested the moment he steps onto the compound by his snake of a son for the very crimes that Alby was trying to get him off the hook for (transporting young girls across state lines, etc.). The scene in which he, Adeleen, and poor Joey are surrounded by cops and told to put their hands behind their backs will resonate with me the next year. Apparently, 30 pieces of silver is all it takes for an ambitious son to stab his father in the back...

Lois. If there was any doubt, Lois is pure, unadulterated EVIL. We finally learn that she was the one who coerced Wanda into poisoning Frank and her landlord at the laundromat! She also tried to get her to shoot the district attorney, but says that Wanda's poisoning of Alby was all her. Still, she brings a bottle of anti-freeze (Wanda's favorite!) and tries to get Wanda to kill Roman Grant once and for all. Oh, Lois, I get that the Grants kicked you out of the big house, but murder?

Sarah. She's really in a state of freefall at this point. She wants out of this life and she's trying to save Ben along the way, but he's so clouded by his need for Bill's approval that he doesn't see the forest for the trees. It's quite sad. She turns to Heather (yay, Tina Majorino!) for help in trying to get Ben to attend an LSD dance, but when that fails she cries solemnly in the parking lot before "following" Ben with the car. And she puts her own beliefs aside to then lose her virginity to Scott, despite everything she's thought and felt up until this point. Sarah is sadly slipping further and further away. That said, I thought the scene with her and her "LD sidekick" Heather in Roman's room was absolutely hysterical, even if Nicki didn't find it so funny.

Margene. I couldn't believe that Margene went ahead and agreed to carry Pam and Carl's baby without discussing this with any other member of the family. Margene's turned into quite the power-hungry sister wife all of the sudden and is desperate for what she perceives to be equality with Barb and Nicki. I loved how Nicki told her that she was all young and pretty and therefore couldn't have equality, but I was stunned that Margene turned around and casually told Nicki (and later Barb) about Bill and Ana. Glad to see that that storyline is finally paying off in dividends. Still, it was telling that Margene was positively beaming when Barb publically accepted her as her sister wife and grasped her hand in front of Pam. Aw, I love Margene again!

Ana. I was so surprised to see Ana return to the mix. I thought she handled Margene's deceit rather well but it's clear she still has feelings for Bill, even if he did make an idiot out of her by leaving her standing there by herself. Still, if that scene in the pantry is an indication, Ana's not going anywhere any time soon.

Just what that means for the rest of the Henrickson family, well, we'll have to wait until next summer to find out. And, if you're as obsessed with Big Love as I am, it's going to be one long wait...

Scary Mother-Blankers: A Look at TV's Meanest Moms

Sure, there are more than a few television mothers who are forces for good: paragons of maternal instincts, positive role-models whose children are well-behaved and look up to them or misunderstood martyrs who are just plain unappreciated.

But let's be honest: the TV mothers that are the most memorable tend to play their roles in a no-wire-hangers Joan Crawford kind of way. These moms, sometimes as eeevil as can be, are usually a hell of a lot more fun than their Pollyanna counterparts.

So who made my list of TV's most memorable meanie moms? Let's take a look.

Name: Julie Cooper (The O.C.)
Actress: Melinda Clarke
Likes: Power, money, powerful men with money, decorating large mansions, blackmail, her daughter's cast-off boyfriends, manipulating everyone around her, Newport Living.
Dislikes: Ryan Atwood, downsizing, no-fault divorces, getting jilted, being blackmailed, Chino.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Sleeping with daughter Marisa's high school sweetheart Luke, nearly murdering husband Caleb, persisting in calling Kirsten "Kiki," divorcing Jimmy after discovering his financial problems, discarding husbands like used Kleenex, turning a blind eye to Marissa's blatant alcoholism, sending younger daughter Kaitlin away to school and then promptly forgetting all about her.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 8. This Real Housewife of Orange County is as nasty a mutha as they come.

Name: Lucille Bluth (Arrested Development)
Actress: Jessica Walters
Likes: Gin, keeping Buster under her thumb, adopting Korean children, abusing Lindsay, abusing Lupe, soup, yachts, the amorous attentions of her husband's twin brother Oscar, being zipped up.
Dislikes: Lucille Ostero, Klimpy's restaurants, her driver's license picture, au pairs, her children forgetting her birthday, pool food.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Adopting Annyong to make Buster jealous, forcing that same son to take part each year in Motherboy competitions, attempting to run over someone she thought was eldest son GOB and then pinning the ensuing accident on Michael.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 7. Her mother's milk of kindness dried up long ago.

Name: Lois Henrickson (Big Love)
Actress: Grace Zabriskie
Likes: Being where the action is, fur coats, smirking, turning her sons against each other, turning her sons against her husband, turning her husband against her sons, the smell of laundered money.
Dislikes: Hubby Frank, being neglected by her family, sister wives, smiling, pumping gas.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Committing daughter-in-law Wanda to the "booby trap," turning to granddaughter Sarah for help only to rat her out to her parents, attempting to coerce Wanda into shooting the district attorney, admitting on several occasions that she wishes she had strangled son Bill during infancy.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 8. Extra points for also playing hellishly scary mom to Laura Palmer on Twin Peaks.

Name: Lianne Mars (Veronica Mars)
Actress: Corinne Bohrer
Likes: Booze, booze, and more booze. Also: extramarital affairs, unicorn music boxes, grand theft, dive bars, sneaking vodka into water bottles, Jake Kane.
Dislikes: Celeste Kane, standing by her man, people taking surveillance shots of her daughter, rehab.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Sleeping with both hubby Keith and high school sweetheart Jake Kane so that the parentage of baby Veronica was in question, running away without so much as a by-your-leave, using Veronica's college fund to enter rehab and then dropping out before completing treatment, running away with a $50,000 check intended for Veronica.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 7. A music box is no replacement for a mommy.

Name: Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)
Actress: Kelly Bishop
Likes: Cocktail hour, Friday night dinners, her beloved DAR, pearls, guilt trips, trips to Europe, Chilton Academy, redecorating the pool house, anything and everything that granddaughter Rory does.
Dislikes: Unwed mothers, subpar servants, Pennilyn Lott, hospital pillows, the state of Lorelai's life, mushed banana on toast.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Blackmailing daughter Lorelai into Friday night dinners in exchange for Rory's tuition, repeatedly springing blind dates on Lorelai, backpedaling on the issue of Rory dropping out of Yale, attempting to break up Lorelai and Luke and push Lorelai and Christopher together, firing every maid she's ever employed.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 4. Despite her overbearing ways, she really does want what's best for Lorelai and Rory.

Name: Atia of the Julii (Rome)
Actress: Polly Walker
Likes: Torturing her enemies, status, gossip, sex, self-preservation, manipulating others into doing her bidding, ritually bathing in the blood of animals.
Dislikes: Servilia, honesty, weakness, charity, the taste of ashes and iron, Marc Antony marrying her daughter, her children committing incest, not being the center of attention, that "pigspawn trollop" Cleopatra.
Acts of Treachery and Wanton Evil: Paying to have humiliating graffiti of Servilia and Caesar appear on streets around Rome, hiring Titus Pullo to take son Octavian to a brothel, ordering Timon to publicly strip and beat Servilia and later ordering her kidnapping and brutal torture.
Joan Crawford-O-Meter: 10. Not since Livia Soprano has there been a worse Roman matriarch; Atia virtually wrote an ancient text on bad parenting.

What other villainous matriarchs do you think should have made it on this list? Which one of these malevolent mothers is truly the wickedest of them all? You decide.

"Back Away From My Navigator": Barb Mends Burnt Bridges on "Big Love"

Wowsers. That's all I can really say about last night's episode of Big Love ("Take Me As I Am"), the series' penultimate episode before the season finale. I've kind of grown to like having Big Love on Monday nights; after all, there's only so much stress and drama you can take on a Sunday evening before beginning your work week anew.

Last night's episode definitely propelled this season's diverse plots forward, tying together several loose strands into a razor-sharp ball of wire. Who would have thought that Wanda would try to repeat her crime? Or that Alby would prove that old dictum about the enemy of my enemy being my friend? Or that there's a Parselmouth wandering around Juniper Creek? (More on that last bit in a moment.)

Barb. She really has made her bed after all of these years. I did feel for her after she saw the wedding announcement for her mother (guest star Ellen Burstyn) and Ned (guest star Philip Baker Hall) in the newspaper; her relationship with her family has been completely fractured as a result of Bill's testimony about The Principle. The scene between her and her mother outside the wedding hall, in which Barb admitted that while she doesn't know if they'll end up together in the afterlife she wants to see her in this life, brought tears to the eyes of this jaded TV-phile.

I do feel for Barb, for the sacrifices she's made in order to keep her marriage and her family together, and for the fact that she does want better for her children. (And with a sister like hers, it's hard not to sympathize about her estrangement from her mother.) Still, I couldn't believe that her mom was telling people that Barb had left Bill and was returning to the LDS church, even if it is the woman's wedding. But I had an even harder time stomaching the fact that Barb was prepared to cart Ben off to Sun Valley for the summer with his grandmother, without even telling Bill what was going on. Even if she was royally ticked off about the fact that Bill concealed the fact that he stole Weber Gaming from Roman Grant. Le sigh.

Nicki. Nicholette Grant is going to get someone in this family killed. Between stealing the $68,000 in tithe money from Juniper Creek, she unknowingly ratted out Bill to her insane brother Alby about the purchase of Weber Gaming. And if there's one thing Nicki is good at, it's self-preservation, so I can totally see her bolting with her kids and heading back to the compound, leaving the rest of the Henrickson clan to face the wrath of Alby on their own, especially if she can't convince Bill to dump Weber Gaming before it's too late. (Loved how Bill told Nicki that poll was "closed.")

Wanda. She's obviously slipping into madness again, as evidenced by the fact that she was ready to poison either Kathy Marquart... or commit murder-suicide and kill them all with a poison cake. She's so clearly not on board with Joey's sudden interest in plural marriage and I don't see why Joey hasn't noticed her blatant distaste yet; even so, her sudden attempt to demonize Kathy ("Alby's going to get you.") even may have soured Kathy towards her plight. Just where did the trio run to and how long will it take before they show up at Bill's houses?

Margene. I knew that the writers wouldn't just drop the surrogate mother storyline and I'm glad to see they didn't. Just how Margene is going to wriggle out of this one, I'm not entirely sure, especially with Pam offering Margene $50,000 to carry her child. Something that Margene is actually considering, BTW. (How will Margie conceal the fact that in a few months her baby, meant to go to some childless "god-fearing" couple, is living at home with her?) I wasn't all that pleased with Margene this week. Sure, I'd be furious at Bill for leaving me in the car "like a dog," but it wasn't right to cause a scene outside Barb's mother's wedding like that.

Sarah and Ben. The eldest Henrickson children seem to be the most messed up by their parents' decision to enter polygamy. Sarah's relationship with Scott went on the rails this week as she discovered that he was cheating on her and having sex with multiple women as he can't "handle" her virginity; despite her abhorrence of her parents' lifestyle, she was willing to "share" Scott with other women. (Hello, kettle? I've got pot on the line for you.) I was hoping that Sarah would be the one to run away with her grandmother for the summer and leave the clan behind (she so clearly needs to), but I didn't want to lose Amanda Seyfried for next week's finale, either. Still, Nicki did give Sarah some good advice: "Hold on to your chastity, but show him what he's missing."

Meanwhile, Benny is seriously considering dating those creepy twins from the compound that he met at Nicki's party? Shudder. I would have thought that he had more sense than to get involved with two backwards girls whose main goal in life is to "marry the same guy before they're seventeen." Would someone shake some sense into this kid?

Alby. There's no doubt in my mind: Alby is certifiably insane, a sociopath of epic proportions who would just as soon skin you alive as he would smile at you. His scene with Lois at Joey and Wanda's deserted house proved that. Lois claims that she is the only one to know what Alby really is (hmmm) and he grabs at her face, only to play a game of "got your nose." I'm not sure if he got in touch with the Greenes or they contacted him (I'm guessing it's the former rather than the latter) but I was screaming at the television when he fell for Hollis' ruse that it was Bill who put them up to shooting Roman. (Argh!)

I shudder to think what holy vengeance Alby will rain down upon the Henrickson household(s) in his quest to avenge his heavily-sedated father and prophet. But it's bound to be even more bloody than leaving a snake in Barb and Bill's bed. As soon as I saw Barb look at the bed, I knew what lurked under those covers. And when that snake pounced, I nearly leapt out of my chair. If this is the opening salvo in a full-blown war between Juniper Creek and our favorite polygamist family, I'm deeply worried about what next week's finale will bring...

Next week on the season finale of Big Love ("Oh, Pioneers"): the Henricksons receive a rather unexpected guest; Sarah and Heather team up to bring Ben back to reality; Margene makes a grab for power; and just where is Nicki off to in the middle of the night? Find out next Sunday.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: How I Met Your Mother/The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS); Thank God You're Here (NBC); Everybody Hates Chris/All of Us (CW); Wife Swap (ABC); TV's Funniest Moments (FOX)

9 pm: Two and a Half Men/Rules of Engagement (CBS); Heroes (NBC); Girlfriends/The Game (CW); Fat March (ABC)

10 pm: CSI: Miami (CBS); Dateline (NBC); Supernanny (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: The Closer on TNT.

Thanks to Wendy S., I'm giving this series a chance. On tonight's episode ("Culture Shock"), Brenda investigates the murder of a tour company owner whose corpse is discovered on one of her tour buses, while Fritz spends some quality time with Brenda's parents.

10 pm: Weeds on Showtime.

The third season of Showtime's acclaimed comedy, Weeds continues. On tonight's episode ("A Pool and His Money"), Nancy is forced to forge new deals with Heylia and U-Turn, while Andy learns no good deal goes unpunished.

10 pm: Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations on Travel Channel.

The third season of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations continues as Tony Bourdain travels to French Polynesia, where he makes a stop in Tahiti and researches some myths about cannibals.

The Happiest Girl: Secrets and Lies on "Big Love"

I cannot believe that there are only two episodes left of Big Love but I also can't believe that, given those parameters, HBO would shift the drama back to Sundays beginning next week. Then again, maybe there's a reason I'm not a network programmer.

In this week's episode of Big Love ("The Happiest Girl"), things definitely built to a head not just for the Henrickson clan but for all of the disparate characters and the multiple secrets they've been hiding from one another. What other series could wring such drama out of a gaming convention or the preparation for a party? (Answer: none.) And that's the beauty of Big Love, that it derives such pleasure from the mundane and ordinary and manages to create a taut drama with an added dose of unexpected humor.

Barb. I wouldn't be surprised if Barb decides to break free from the Henrickson clan by the end of the season. Given her distaste of Weber Gaming and her frustration with Bill and her sister wives, I could see Barb attempting to pull away and try and form her own life. (She's already attempting to do so with her return to school.) Does she have the courage to go it alone? And was she ever cut out for a life of polygamy in the first place? I thought she played her part astoundingly well when Bill summoned her to the convention to be his "public wife," though like Margene I was surprised that she came a'running as quickly as she did; that said, if there's one thing that Barb respects, it's responsibility. Still, I want to see Barb lose her sad martyr's smile and find some level of happiness for herself.

Nicki. Once again, Nicki is going to sink all of them in serious trouble with the compound. I cannot believe that she stole $60,000 from Juniper Creek and was throwing a lavish party for Joey, Wanda, and Kathy's announcement ceremony as though it were no big deal. With a sign that read "Hosted by Nicolette Grant," ice sculptures, and a chocolate fountain, no less! (That's how you know that the chocolate fountain craze is finally over: if a compound-raised polygamist wants one for a party, the trend has reached over-saturation.) Still, that was child's play compared to what happened when Alby tried to stop the party and then showed up at the Henrickson homes to demand she cease her activities. Alby knows that Nicki stole that cash from the UEB and that she was on the compound but didn't come to his testimony meeting, but he didn't know anything about Bill's involvement with Weber Gaming until Nicki told him! Grr argh! This will not end well and Alby will use the full force of Juniper Creek to rain down hell upon Bill and his wives. Nicolette Grant, I'd like to slap you now please.

Alby. Alby is dangerous, pure and simple. While Roman was a creepy old man, Alby is a sociopathic nutcase with no compunctions about using whatever means necessary to enact revenge and steal his place at the head of the table. Even if that means keeping his own mother from seeing Old Roman on his deathbed and inciting his creepy first wife Lura to inject his father with enough morphine to send the old man into an eternal slumber. "Sleep papa," Alby says as the morphine reaches its mark. "I will avenge you." Um, those shivers that ran up my spine? They're not going anymore. Kudos to for setting the murder scene against that of Rhonda appearing on television, singing to Roman to "wake up, you sleepyhead." Classic.

Heather. Yay, Mac (Tina Majorino) is back! Or, well, Heather Tuttle, anyway. I was so happy to see Heather return to the show as Sarah definitely needs a confidante but I really hope that the reason Heather was whispering to her overbearing LSD mother was that she was finally telling her that Rhonda was blackmailing her about her "feelings" for Sarah. Please let Rhonda get the comeuppance she so richly deserves. That said, was Rhonda on to something? Does Heather have feelings for Sarah that go beyond their friendship? And is that why she's so edgy around Sarah's boyfriend Scott? Hmmm, curious.

Margene. I really did feel bad for poor Margene, who got majorly shafted this week. I had no idea that her and Bill's honeymoon was cut short (though I don't think Barb was lying when she said Tiny had a fever) and wished that these two could finally get the alone time they need. Still, Margene was not totally equipped to play the part of the public wife initially, instantly revealing her status as third wife to a complete stranger. Still, she fits into the world of Weber Gaming better than Barb and proved her worth that evening; Barb is all about dinner parties and company functions but it's Margene that can steer Bill through this world. Who else cheered when Bill came clean about Barb and Margene being his wives? I thought it was one of the best payoffs of this season and got the poker players to view Bill as one of their own. In the end, I do think the the happiest girl in the world was Margene, after all.

Next week on Big Love ("Take Me as I Am"), the drama moves to Sundays as Bill makes Alby an offer, Barb reaches out to her estranged family (including mother Ellen Burstyn) while alienating her sister wives, and Sarah and Scott's relationship is tested.

Thieves, Cheats, and Gamblers on "Big Love"

While last night's episode of Big Love ("Circle the Wagons") may not have had as many pick-your-jaw-off-the-ground moments as last week's action-packed installment, but it did answer the question that I've been pondering for the better part of last week.

That question? Is Old Roman (Harry Dean Stanton) dead and how will everyone react to his attempted murder by member of the Greenes' cult?

It turns out that the first part of that query is still difficult to answer. It appears that Old Roman has survived the assassination attempt on his life... for now, anyway. The prophet's not looking too good, anyway. Despite three bullets fired into him at close range, Roman survived several surgeries and was in critical condition but at the hospital he began to sing some creepy song (anyone have an idea what it was?) and started to bleed out. I never thought I'd feel bad for Old Roman, but talk about such an undignified way to die.

I loved the fact that one of Old Roman's would-be killers gave a shout-out to Squeaky Frome. For those of you not in the know, Lynette Alice "Squeaky" Frome was a follower of Charles Manson who stepped out of a crowd and pointed a gun at President Ford; she was apprehended before the gun could go off. Nice touch, Big Love writers.

With only three episodes to go, I'm really on the fence about whether Roman will live or die. In last night's episode, Alby made a play for power, guided by the hand of Adeleen, and I could see the series' writers having this ambitious psychotic take over running Juniper Creek next season. Or Roman could pull through in the end. Either way, I was stunned by the scene in which Alby, you know, started smelling the vapors in Roman's hat or whatever he was doing to channel the voice of the prophet. And, wouldn't you know, that voice sounded an awful lot like Alby himself and just happened to tell the congregation that he should lead them "during and after" Roman's death.

Kudos too to Adeleen for her convincing testimony that she saw the faces of Roman, Alby, and Joseph Smith in a vision. She even lined up a "witness" to this testimony to make her case even stronger. Now you know from where Nicki gets her skills for manipulation.

Nicki. Poor Nicki isn't taking Roman's shooting well. On the outs with the rest of her family, she's been shunned and ex-communicated from Juniper Creek but Adeleen does grant her a half-hour on the now highly-secure property. Nicki, in an attempt to make amends, steals Margene's garage freezer and brings it to Juniper Creek so Adeleen has someplace to store "all those casseroles" and is, in the words of the immortal Cher Horowitz, "brutally rebuffed." Ahem. Loved the scene in which a jilted Nicki decides to cut her losses and, well, repeatedly ram the hell out of that freezer with her pick-up truck. Classic.

What the hell was Nicki thinking stealing that cash from Juniper Creek? And how did she think that she would get away with it? Still, I love the fact that out of all of Bill's wives, she's the one to develop a gambling addiction. Teehee.

Lois. If we didn't already think that Lois was an underhanded, conniving master manipulator, we certainly do now. She turned to Sarah for help against Bill but when she met Sarah's 28-year-old boyfriend Scott, turned on her granddaughter and ratted her out to Barb (still not sure why though). But I was floored to learn that Lois broke into hubby Frank's house, locked him and the wives up in a closet, and ransacked his place. I only wish that we had gotten to see what must have been a hysterical scene, followed by Lois' arrest. I think it could have been one of the most comical scenes of the season. In any event, we (and Lois) learn that Frank has multiple businesses that he's concealed from everyone and Lois finds that check Bill gave to Frank in order to force him to legally marry Lois. Hmmm. Perhaps if Lois sues for divorce, she could walk away with half of everything, anyway.

Barb and Bill. Is it just me or has Bill really turned into a domineering patriarch over the course of this season? I've said it before but I'll say it again: he keeps claiming that he's different than the other Juniper Creek polygamists but then he acts just like them at moments like this. So what gives? Is he devolving into a caveman or finally showing his true colors?

As for Barb, she refuses to go down without a fight, considering all of the sacrifices she's made over the years. And won't back down over her distaste for the Weber Gaming deal, despite what Nicki might say. I'm not entirely sure why Barb and Bill went golfing with Roman at death's door or why she suddenly developed an irritating habit of chewing ice, but I do think that Barb was right to try to put her foot down about this deal. After all, it's not like they know the whole picture and Barb was right to suggest that this deal would put them in the same room as some rather shifty individuals (i.e. the Greenes).

I did think it was interesting that she reached out to Heather's policeman father and tried to bring Heather back into Sarah's life, even if it was a rather underhanded thing to do. Still, it came from good intentions (making sure Sarah had a positive influence in her life) though I wonder how truthful she was being about having Sarah attend an LDS church. We haven't really seen Barb's Boss Lady side lately, so it's good to know she hasn't lost her assertiveness after all.

Next week on Big Love ("The Happiest Girl"), Bill and Margene attend a convention together, Alby discovers that Juniper Creek has been robbed, Rhonda attempts to blackmail Sarah, and Frank isn't quite done with amateur poisoner Wanda.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Power of 10 (CBS); America's Got Talent (NBC; 8-9:30 pm); Gilmore Girls (CW); Just for Laughs/Just for Laughs (ABC); On the Lot (FOX)

9 pm: Big Brother 8 (CBS); The Singing Bee (NBC; 9:30-10 pm); Beauty and the Geek (CW); Primetime (FOX); House (FOX)

10 pm: NCIS (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); I-Caught (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: Eureka on Sci Fi.

Season Two of Eureka continues tonight with "Duck, Duck Goose," in which a massive cloud--comprised of space debris--forms over the town of Eureka, leading Carter to investigate a possible chance of averting the complete destruction of this little Pacific Northwest berg.

10-11:02 pm: Damages on FX.

FX's new legal drama Damages continues. On tonight's episode ("And My Paralyzing Fear of Death"): a mysterious threat could disrupt Patty's entire case against Frobisher while she is distracted by the disappearance of her troubled teenage son; Ellen discovers that she will have to sacrifice everything for her job; and Tom discovers something buried deep in Katie's past.

10 pm: Flipping Out on Bravo.

Okay, I know this is unexpected but I can't help but watch the crazy people in this topsy-turvey world. In this week's episode, Jeff puts the house he's living in onto the market but encounters problems when the new house he's bought has a tenant that is refusing to leave and, oh, Jeff's cat Monkey goes missing. Meanwhile, check out Trash Guy's t-shirt in the confrontation scene.

Naughty Girls and Good Girls on "Big Love"

Oh. My. God.

Seriously. Did anyone see THAT coming?

I'm talking about last night's episode of Big Love ("Kingdom Come") and if you've read this far already, I'm just going to come out and say it. The seriously maniacal Greenes ambushed Old Roman and shot him--not once!--but three times in the middle of a crowded street.

My jaw seriously hit the floor. Could the series' writers really have killed off the butterscotch-sundae-and-7UP-loving Roman just like that? And what does that mean for the series and its main characters, the plucky Henrickson clan, if their nemesis Roman is taken out of the picture? Is it a case of be careful what you wish for, as the only one who would succeed Roman if the prophet, er, ascended is Alby?

But before we get to that, a few other things. Was anyone else slightly perturbed by the fact that the "previously on" scenes lasted a few four minutes before the episode even began? I know that a lot has happened this season on Big Love, but with only four more episodes to go, did we really need a play-by-play recap of what had happened thus far?

Ben. I loved the fact that Bill was trying to teach teenage son Ben about the immorality of lust whilst carrying on with each of his wives right behind one another's backs. It was a thread that beautifully, er, climaxed when Ben told his parents that he wanted to marry Brynn as she was "the One" for right now and if he met someone else and didn't love Brynn as much, he'd take her on as a second wife. Cue that heartbreaking look of extreme despair and realization on Barb's face. (Ouch.)

I understand that Ben didn't feel that engaging in premarital sex was a sin and wanted to get his parents off his back but that was hitting below the belt, especially at a time when the arrangement between Barb and her sister wives are strained at best. Still, I was shocked that Barb went to Brynn and told her to reconsider the life of polygamy she's getting herself involved in. I know she did it for a good reason but it was shocking nonetheless.

Bill, for all of his claims that he's not the same as his father or Roman or any of the men on the Juniper Creek compound, certainly puts his foot down when he wants to and doesn't brook any opposition to his "divine" will. I do have to say that the past few episodes have made me not like Bill at that much as he's pursued revenge against Roman and played the Old Man against the dangerous Greenes, despite constant warnings from Don (whose advice Bill usually shrugs off).

Still, my love for Barb was reaffirmed when she agreed to Bill's desire of a "night off" twice a month but said that he would spend that night with his kids and not hiding out in the basement. Was there ever any doubt that Barb is truly a selfless human being?

Naughty Girl vs. Good Girl. I loved the dichotomy set up between Margene and Nicki about their views of sex. Margene was the one most understanding about Ben having sex ("Can I tell you a secret?" she asked Nicki. "If you must.") as she lost her virginity when she was Ben's age. While Nicki views what Margene and Bill do, after catching them in flagrante delicto, as morally wrong and against her religious views (sex=procreation, not recreation), Margene takes it upon herself to talk to Bill about why he's not pleasing Nicki in bed. I loved this twist; Margene is meant to be the most immature of Bill's wives (and a possible "playtoy" in her own eyes) and assumed by Nicki to be the one sapping Bill's strength with her "demands" yet she was the one most inclusive about her ideas of plural marriage and wanted to make sure that each of the wives and Bill was satisfied.

Meanwhile, I cannot believe that Eddie's start-up money was stolen from a dead woman (or a not-so-dead woman, anyway) and it explains where Lois' stash was coming from. I love the irony that they're literally laundering money through a laundromat but I was surprised to see that Lois was aware of exactly what she was doing and sold Bill out to Frank AND offered herself up to her evil husband as an inducement to return the $20K or so he stole from her. I did feel bad for Lois when she lost the laundromat ("I just want to be where the action is!" she pleaded with Bill.) but her actions were absolutely reprehensible in this episode and her financial dreams were build on rather shaky moral ground.

The Greenes. These are very, very scary people and Bill should not be messing around with them. Sure, he went to his lawyer and got the ATF involved. End of story with the Greenes running with their tails between their legs to Arizona? Um, not quite. As long as Hollis and his "brother" Selma (color me even more confused now, is Selma a man or a woman?) are out there, Bill and his family are in danger. Hell, the last minute of last night's episode prove just how dangerous and virulent the Greenes' cult truly is.

Finally, I cannot believe that those two grubby women casually walked up to Roman in broad daylight and shot him right in the street before running away. While Roman's a prickly SOB, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty about his death; after all, it's Bill who directly caused this turn of events. Kudos to David Byrne for selecting "Knocking on Heaven's Door" as the music during this scene and the heart-wrenching sight of Adeleen and Alby both running to a broken Roman as he bleeds out onto the pavement. One shot and I might think that Roman could walk away from this. But three bullets, including one to the gut? Not likely, though I don't think the prophet is dead quite yet.

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm pulling for the creepy old man to make it. If not, let's just hope Roman enjoyed his final earthbound butterscotch sundae and 7Up.

Next week on Big Love ("Circle the Wagons"), Bill turns to Nicki to get Barb and Margene on board his plans for Weber Gaming, Alby holds vigil at Papa Roman's bedside and crashes a meeting of the UEB, and Lois tries to get back on Bill's good side again.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); America's Got Talent (NBC; 8-9:30 pm); Gilmore Girls (CW); Just for Laughs/Just for Laughs (ABC); On the Lot (FOX)

9 pm: Big Brother 8 (CBS); The Singing Bee (NBC; 9:30-10 pm); Beauty and the Geek (CW); Shaq's Big Challenge (FOX); House (FOX)

10 pm: 48 Hours Mystery (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Primetime (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: Eureka on Sci Fi.

Season Two of Eureka continues tonight with "Games People Play," in which Carter finds himself in a parallel version of Eureka after a blow to the head; one problem, in this Eureka people keep disappearing.

10-11:06 pm: Damages on FX.

FX's new legal drama Damages continues. On tonight's episode ("Jesus, Mary and Joe Crocker"), Frobisher is forced to make some dangerous decisions when Ellen delivers her boyfriend's sister Katie as a key witness in the case, but Patty is suspicious that not everything is as it seems.

10 pm: Flipping Out on Bravo.

Okay, I know this is unexpected but I watched a screener of the first two episodes a few weeks back and totally got sucked into this topsy-turvey world. In the series premiere ("Top"), we meet OCD-prone real-estate investor Jeff and his kooky staff of incompetent employees. Is it just me or is his assistant, a Julia Louis-Dreyfus lookalike, absolutely hysterical?