Casting Couch Scoop: O'Hara Tries "Good Behavior" for Rob Thomas

Ooh, do I have a hot casting scoop for you today.

Remember Good Behavior, the highly anticipated drama pilot from Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas? (How could you not, as I've been talking about it incessantly since I read the pilot script a few weeks back.)

No shortage of leading ladies have circled this project in recent weeks, with many naming Rene Russo as the frontrunner for the pivotal role of Jackie West, the tough-as-nails matriarch of the criminal West family who forces her family to become pillars of the community after her husband is sentenced to five years in prison. Mae Whitman (Arrested Development) and Patrick Adams (Lost) have already been cast in the drama pilot.

So who has locked up the role of Jackie West, in a casting move that has my heart all aflutter?

According to my source, none other than Catherine O'Hara, whose star turns in multiple Christopher Guest movies (take your pick: Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, Waiting for Guffman, For Your Consideration) have not only made her a favorite of mine but whose comedic sensibilities will come in handy with this gutsy, headstrong female role, a real rarity these days in Hollywood. Then again, the project is from Veronica creator Thomas, who has shown a penchant for creating tough, three-dimensional female characters.

Production on the pilot of Good Behavior, based on Kiwi series Outrageous Behavior, starts May 20th, with Charles McDougall (Desperate Housewives) directing.

Fingers crossed that this gets a greenlight to series ASAP.

An Embarrassment of Riches: Season Finale of "The Riches"

While the expression "an embarrassment of riches" might refer to having more of something good or pleasant than you need, that was just the opposite this year with the severely truncated season of The Riches, which wrapped its second season last night on FX.

Originally ordered for thirteen episodes this season, The Riches found itself downscaled to just seven when production was shut down during the writers strike. Personally, I am a huge fan of this series and hope that the shortened season doesn't bode against renewing this compelling, subtle drama for a third season. (Not helping matters is that creator Dmitry Lipkin has sold a pilot script for Hung to HBO.) Especially since last night's unintentional season finale ("The Lying King") left nearly every characters' plotlines hopelessly dangling in the wind.

While some viewers have found this season to be creatively uneven, I've been really intrigued by the second season of The Riches, which placed the characters in far more dire straits than in the freshman season and put them in morally compromising, soul-killing situations that pushed them to their breaking points.

It's never been in question that the name of their little adopted community, Eden Falls, was anything other than intentional. Here, it signifies the ultimate purgatory as each of the characters--from Wayne and Dahlia to poor Nina--are forced to relive their sins in a neverending and perpetual cycle of self-destruction. Try as they might to become buffers, to give themselves new names and iPhones, they can't escape their pasts. Wayne claims that everyone creates their own luck but they same holds true with bad luck and the Molloys seem to have found themselves surrounded by a big old mess of bad karma.

I was really on the edge of my seat as Dahlia contemplated returning to drug abuse and obliterating herself; when she wrapped that belt around her arm, I worried that she was totally and completely relapse. After all, she's been stripped of her armor completely now: her parole officer turned his back on her (more on that in a bit), Wayne was revealed as a liar and accomplice to murder, Cael ran away, and Nina abandoned her. Dahlia is a consummate liar but she's finally realized that she's been lying to herself... even if her confession to Nina resulted in a complete lack of belief on her friend's part.

I literally gasped when Nina asked her about what happened to Pete. I get that Dahlia wouldn't want to involve Nina in the entire Pete murder/cover-up but she did to Nina just what she's angry at Wayne for doing to her. For proving once again that the best thing a Traveler is good at is lying. Still, I couldn't believe that her married parole officer kissed her after he discovered Dahlia skulking outside his house... with his wife and kid just a few feet away. I could tell from the way he looked at her and fingered his wedding ring that he was attracted to Dahlia but I had no idea that he would actually act on this and cross that boundary. For Dahlia's part, at least she put a stop to it. In a lot of ways, this was Minnie Driver's episode and I was completely transfixed by her vulnerability and raw emotion as she portrayed Dahlia as a woman beset by demons, both internal and external.

As for Wayne, he's finding himself playing both sides against each other. He's made a deal with the devil by turning to Minkov to defend the Bayou Hills construction site from Quinn's men. He's obviously conflicted about this decision--with it comes the promise that he'll throw Hugh under the bus--but it seemed the most expedient way to ensure that he can collect his $13 million from the land deal. Likely he thinks the Molloys can just disappear into the night after that, but Minkov is far too cunning to let that happen. Wayne is playing with fire; he has Dale, Quinn, Minkov, and Hugh looking over his shoulder and none of them are going to let him off the hook for what's liable to happen next.

I loved the scene between Wayne and Nina in the kitchen as Nina lights up (much to Dr. Morgenstern's delight) and asks him, as he tries calling Dahlia for the nth time, if he's looking for Dahlia Molloy or Sherien Rich. Have they started living the lie? To me, this episode included some of the very best Nina-driven scenes of the series and actress Margo Martindale deserves an Emmy for her performance. Her distraught tantrum at Jim's funeral, her disbelief at Dahlia stringing her yet another lie, her confrontation with Wayne at the house; these all add up to a nuanced performance of a woman fed up with being lied to her whole life.

I was intrigued about where the writers were going with Sam and his new friend from school; she clearly accepts him for who he is and is going to great lengths to get him to express his true identity as a cross-dresser. I loved the scene in his bedroom where she dresses him up in girl's clothing and tells him how beautiful he looks. I am not sure where this will go but it was a fantastic coda to Sam's entire relationship with his conflicted nature.

Cael has begun to fit in among the Travelers again, helped along by his newfound relationship with Rosaleen. I loved the scene in which Quinn asked him to come with him to break up that fight and then stood beside Cael and offered a toast to the reunion of the clan, to a Quinn standing next to a Molloy... and then later called Wayne to say that they'd now be business partners and, if Wayne didn't like it, well, Quinn has his son.

As for Didi, it's only fitting that she'd suddenly be interested in how the other half was living, in skulking around the huge buffer mansions that pepper Eden Falls with her new security guard friend Ike (Joan of Arcadia's Michael Welch). Her affair with Ike and her breaking and entering routine are a surefire act of rebellion against everything Wayne has come to stand for. Of all of the Molloys, she did seem the most at home as a buffer, attending school and wanting more from life than just con and con. Lying in the palatial, imperial bed of her latest B&E victim's house, she can pretend for just a few minutes that this is her life and not the screwed up mess it's become now that she's seen her father for what he really is: the king of liars.

I really hope that FX does decide to renew The Riches for a third season. I for one am not done with the Molloys and hope that fans of the series have the opportunity to see these storylines pay off in a meaningful fashion rather than just have the series end on a slew of mini-cliffhangers that never get resolved. Fingers crossed that the cabler sees it the same way and rewards the cast and crew of The Riches with a reprieve.

BBC America Heads to iTunes

Longtime readers of this site know my love for all things BBC America, so I was over the moon when I learned that the digital cabler has signed a deal with Apple's iTunes to begin selling full episodes for purchase and download through the iTunes Store here in the US.

Customers looking for a Brit fix can now purchase single episodes and complete seasons of such BBC America series as Robin Hood, Torchwood, and Little Britain through the iTunes Store, with new episodes of Robin Hood, which launched its second season this past weekend, available for purchase 24 hours after their linear broadcast.

Episodes will be priced, like their US counterparts, at $1.99 a pop.

“BBC is delighted to provide U.S. audiences with the unique ability to purchase and download select award-winning BBC America programming on the iTunes Store,” said Beth Clearfield, Vice President of Digital Media and Business Development, BBC Worldwide America, in a prepared statment. “As the first U.K. broadcaster available in the U.S., BBC is leveraging its trusted international brand in entertainment to provide our audiences with a first-rate digital experience.”

While the offerings are limited to those three series at the moment, I am confident that BBC America will continue to add programming to the iTunes Store as it becomes available and hopefully within 24 hours of broadcast. And, though I've already downloaded a few episodes of Little Britain to my iPod, I'm hoping that the digital cabler will add upcoming series like Gavin & Stacey, current series like Last Restaurant Standing, or classic series like Spaced to the mix.

An Inspector Calls on "Last Restaurant Standing"

The competition is heating up on BBC America's Last Restaurant Standing, with only three couples remaining. I think that over the last dozen or so weeks, Raymond and his talented team of restaurant inspectors have managed to cull the wheat from the chaff and I am pleased with the final three teams left standing.

This week definitely put the pressure on all of them to pull out all of the stops, to entertain and delight their customers, to increase their nightly bookings and turn their tables, and--most importantly--to impress Monsieur Raymond Blanc, who dropped into each restaurant unannounced at various points during the weekend service. It was immensely interesting to see how the front of house and kitchen dealt with his arrival and his presence throughout the evening; in every case, the chefs neglected the food to focus on Raymond. Hell, Jeremy stood there for 15 minutes chatting with him pleasantly about this, that, and the other, while pans nearly boiled over and tickets lined up across the board. Ouch.

But the most intriguing element was to see Raymond poking his nose into the behind the scenes action at Jacques Tamson's, Brown & Green, and Eight in the Country to see how well organized and hygienic the chefs were and, for a Last Restaurant Standing first, to taste their food. Did it live up to Raymond's expectations? Was he treated well by the staff? Let's discuss.

Personally, I'd be happy with any of the teams winning at this point but I was slightly disappointed by what Raymond discovered in some of their kitchens. I've been of the mind up until now that the vegetarian haggis served so lovingly at Grant and Laura's Jacques Tamson's restaurant in Windsor (at time accompanied by a Robert Burns poem, no less) was definitely homemade. Not so, as I depressingly learned from this week's episode: Grant buys them in ready-made and pre-packaged in plastic wrap and keeps them in the cooler. I thought this was pretty sad, in fact. One of their selling points is authentic Scottish cuisine (they seemed to have dropped the French influence along the way) and I assumed--incorrectly--that this was a restaurant specialty, handmade with love and, er, sheep tripe. Points off there for inconsistency, Grant, especially since you did run out of the haggis and had to invent another vegetarian menu option for Raymond on the spot. While I wasn't so turned off by the puff pastry idea as Raymond, I do think that Grant could have come up with something more original and Scottish-themed for the dish that just a puff pastry with vegetables and cheese... served with mash and peas.

At Jess and Laura's whole-foods concept restaurant Brown & Green, homemade wasn't the issue but pre-packaged frozen veg was. For a restaurant that claims to be as fresh and healthy as the girls', I was hoping to see them cooking with more farm-fresh ingredients and less of the supermarket-purchased frozen variety, even though they were all organic. Now I get that some ingredients are actually better frozen (baby peas, for example) because they are picked when perfectly ripe and kept in that state rather than sitting around during the trip to the market, but it did seem as though all of the vegetables were bought in that fashion, which did sit slightly at odds with their culinary ethos. I also thought the restaurant's hygiene was called into question by Raymond, who discovered a kitchen landing covered in detritus, a cabinet filled with dirty, broken dishes and cookware, and moldy raspberries (from several weeks back) on the top shelf of the refrigerator. I was definitely disappointed by this sights. I've been rooting for Jess and Laura for a while now but this definitely made me question whether they are quite ready to run a restaurant... plus, they did have difficulty getting punters in the door for the weekend service, despite sending the servers out with vouchers and fliers.

Over in Eight in the Country, Jeremy definitely seems more in control of his kitchen lately and isn't scrambling over cookbooks while preparing dishes as he was just a few weeks ago. Sure, Jane definitely wears her heart on her sleeve, but I do think that these two have come leaps and bounds as a team and their restaurant can run like a well-oiled machine when they don't get panicked. I definitely think that Raymond's suggestion to write down the time a table has arrived, ordered their food, and been served should be on every ticket, especially since the kitchen and front of house have a hard time remembering how long people have been waiting. And a little more care needs to be put into quality control as Jeremy inadvertently fed a dish of undercooked salmon to a child. But their problems tend to be more in the details and timing than in hygiene or freshness. It was no surprise that they would once again win Restaurant of the Week and be assured of a spot in the finals. At this point, I do think they are the team to beat and whoever else ends up in the Final Two will have their work cut out for them.

As for the other teams, I definitely can see why Raymond put Grant and Laura and the twins into the Challenge. Both teams really need to prove to Raymond and his inspectors that their concept works, that they are committed to be in this business for the long haul, and that they deserve a spot in the final round. Who will emerge to battle against Jane and Jeremy for a chance to own their very own restaurant with Raymond Blanc? Find out next week.

Next week on Last Restaurant Standing, two couples head to Raymond's celebrated restaurant, Le Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons, where they must work in the kitchens and front of house, stepping up to meet the standards of one of the very best restaurants in the world and producing food and service to rival those of Raymond's in his two-star Michelin establishment. There will be tears, tantrums, and demanding customers and only one team will advance to the final rounds with Raymond's blessing. I can't wait!

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Price is Right Million Dollar Spectacular (CBS); Deal or No Deal (NBC; 8-10 pm); America's Next Top Model (CW); Wife Swap (ABC); 'Til Death/Back to You (FOX)

9 pm: Criminal Minds (CBS); Farmer Wants a Wife (CW); Supernanny (ABC); American Idol (FOX)

10 pm: CSI: New York (CBS); Law & Order (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: America's Next Top Model.

On tonight's episode ("We Are Spartans!"), the girls train like gladiators for a challenge, with the winner getting a luxe shopping spree in Rome; later, Tyra directs the girls for a photo shoot in a Roman villa.

9 pm: MI-5 on BBC America.

If you missed the third season of MI-5 (aka Spooks) when it aired on A&E a few years back, you can catch it tonight on BBC America. On tonight's installment ("Celebrity"), MI-5 is called in to investigate when the baby of a rock star (guest star Andy Serkis) and his supermodel wife is kidnapped.

10 pm: Top Chef on Bravo.

On tonight's episode ("Common Threads"), the contestants are tasked with making a healthy meal using a single main ingredient... in the microwave, Table 52's Art Smith drops by as a guest judge, and Mark tells Tom Colicchio that he thinks the Craft guru doesn't like him very much. Ouch. (See below.)

"Roosters Are Real" (But These Girls Are Not): CW's "Farmer Wants a Wife"

I'll admit that I didn't have high expectations for CW's latest reality dating series "experiment," the dubiously named Farmer Wants a Wife, but after watching the series' premiere episode (airing tomorrow night on CW)... let's just say I'm not "walking in high cotton," to borrow a phrase from the series' titular farmer.

From the series' low-budget and ghastly opening sequence, featuring the farmer and a bevy of city-slicker women from whom he'll select his wife under the strains of a painfully cheesy song about the show we're actually watching (and "adorable" on-screen graphics), I knew I was in for something akin to train wreck television. Farmer Wants a Wife isn't a guilty pleasure... it just made me feel plain guilty for watching it.

Sure, I was pleasantly surprised that the farmer in question--Matt, who runs his family's idyllic farm--wasn't a total rube but in fact a college-educated gentleman farmer, albeit one with a penchant for driving around on his tractor shirtless, a fact which may have titillated the reality series' female contestants but which had this jaded critic rolling his eyes. Still, the overly tanned, overly waxed farmer seems to have much more charisma and sophistication than the allegedly cosmopolitan (read: spoiled) women at his disposal. Once again reinforcing the notion that reality television is the last refuge of uneducated, shameless individuals, Farmer Wants a Wife has assembled a bunch of catty, batty, and in many cases just plain trashy women. Some of them may be professionals, but this series reduces them to nothing more than man-crazy harpies with bad skin.

Texas-born Marketing representative Brooke feels an immediate intense connection with Farmer Matt but when she's passed over for a solo date with him (in lieu of her blonde rival), she does her best to spoil that date by toilet papering his truck... a fact which I am sure didn't earn her any points with the farmer. But at least she seems somewhat at home on the farm, which is more than I can say for most of the other women, with the exception of property manager Kanisha and accountant Krista; the majority of the women seem either terrified or grossed out by everything on the farm, from the chickens running freely to the presence of cow dung. A fact which makes me question just what they thought they were getting into by entering this reality television competition.

But the real low here is the inclusion of certifiable math and tennis teacher Josie, a disgusting Orange County self-proclaimed "gold-digger," who refuses to lift a finger, asks Matt's mother about maid service and the toilet quality of the farm house, insults both Matt (his income being far below the successful guys she typically dates) and her fellow contestants, and who walks around in the skimpiest of ill-fitting clothes, her face a fright mask of overblown makeup. I'm really not sure what she's doing here, other than the fact that the producers clearly saw her as someone who would rile up her competitors. Her relish for causing trouble and her revolting personality may just make her the female equivalent of Johnny Fairplay, just more mentally imbalanced if that's possible. It terrifies me that this woman is teaching children anything.

And that's perhaps the most frightening thing about Farmer Wants a Wife: that this seemingly decent guy will be forced to choose a bride from among these shrews. I get that his hometown is small and his options limited, but I can't help but think that there had to be a better solution to finding him a mate than this travesty.

Farmer Wants a Wife launches Wednesday evening at 9 pm on the CW. For a sneak peek, take a look below.

UPDATED: "90210" Gets More Residents

Those of you hoping to catch Hilary Duff on the revival spin-off pilot of Beverly Hills 90210 are just plain out of luck.

Duff has turned down the role of Annie Mills, a drama-obsessed Wichita teenager who relocates to Beverly Hills with her middle-class family, including her father (who takes over as principal at West Beverly Hills High), adopted African-American brother, and her Olympic medalist mother Celia.

Producers had sent Duff a copy of the 90210 pilot script--written by Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas--with the hope that she'd sign onto the project. The role of Annie Mills will now be played by Shenae Grimes, best known for her work as Darcy Edwards on Degrassi: The Next Generation.

Celia, Annie's Olympic medalist/personal trainer mother, will be played by Lori Laughlin (Summerland), which I have to admit is pretty good casting.

In other 90210-related news, I hear that Jennie Garth IS negotiating with CBS Paramount Television to join the cast of 90210. Garth recently dropped out of CBS comedy pilot My Best Friend's Girl, lending speculation that she was going to jump ship to BevHills.

Rob Thomas' pilot script had Garth's 90210 character, Kelly Taylor, working as the fashion teacher at West Beverly Hills High... so it's only a matter of time before the studio is able to close the deal and make an official announcement about her attachment.

UPDATE: Ryan Eggold (Dirt) and Jessica Walters (Arrested Development) have also now been cast in the drama pilot presentation. Walters will play Tabitha Mills, the alcoholic, ex-actress grandmother to Annie whose Beverly Hills home the family moves into after her latest Betty Ford stint. I'm personally surprised by Walters inclusion and, while 90210 should be on their hands and knees praising whoever landed the former Lucille Bluth, I can't help but feel that this project is far beneath Walters.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Most Outrageous Moments/Saturday Night Live (NBC; 8:30-10 pm); Beauty and the Geek (CW); According to Jim/According to Jim (ABC); American Idol (FOX)

9 pm: Shark (CBS); Reaper (CW); Dancing with the Stars (ABC); Hell's Kitchen (FOX)

10 pm: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Women's Murder Club (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: Last Restaurant Standing on BBC America.

On the thirteenth episode of this addictive British import, the remaining three couples are surprised when Raymond unexpectedly turns up at their restaurants and pokes his nose into every single decision they've made up until that point, tasting the food and seeing if their service is up to his high standards... and uncovers moldy ingredients, undercooked food, and unhappy customers.

10 pm: The Riches on FX.

Due to the writers strike, Season Two is wrapping up a lot sooner than was originally expected. On tonight's season finale ("The Lying King"), Wayne and Dahlia are forced to confront the widening chasm between them; the Bayou Hills deal is hanging by a thread after foul play; Didi and Ike get closer; and Rosaleen convinces Cael to stay with the Travelers. Sniffle. I'll miss you, Molloys.

The Doctor Gets a New Partner in Crime on "Doctor Who"

Confession up front: I can't get enough Doctor Who but I was never actually a fan of the original, decades-spanning low-budget sci-fi series. So my experiences with the franchise (and its spin-offs, Torchwood and Sarah Jane Adventures) come courtesy of Russell T. Davies' reimagined BBC series, which airs on Sci Fi and BBC America here in the States.

I was very curious then to tune in on Friday to see the actual fourth season premiere of Doctor Who (following "Voyage of the Damned," the Christmas special which I caught during the winter) to see how well newest cast addition Catherine Tate (she of the eponymous sketch comedy series that spawned the catchphrase "Am I bovvered?") meshed with David Tennant's Doctor.

Tate famously appeared as Donna Noble once before on Doctor Who during the Christmas special "Runaway Bride," which bridged the gap between Season Two and Season Three. While the episode was a laugh, I was concerned about having the caustic Donna turn up every week as the latest foil for the Doctor. Don't get me wrong: I love Catherine Tate but, to date, the Doctor's companions have been less sardonic and more of the headstrong ingenue type.

I was happy to see that in the fourth season premiere ("Partners in Crime"), Donna has been toned down ever so slightly, retaining her trademark outspokenness but her omnipresent abrasiveness has been softened since her first encounter with the Doctor. I liked the way that her adventure with him has changed her perspective on life and that she's been driving around with her car boot full of luggage on the off chance that she runs into him again. In the meantime, she's been poking her nose into weird and strange phenomenon, knowing that the more she does so, the more likely she is to find the Doctor.

Donna and the Doctor's paths keep crossing without either of them realizing it as both launch their own investigations into a miracle diet pill called Adipose, actually a breeding ground for alien life and feeds off of human fat reserves and birthing themselves in the night. The villain this week comes in the form of Adipose Industries' chief officer, the malevolent Miss Foster (Lark Rise to Candleford and Corrie's Sarah Lancashire), who is an intergalactic nanny hellbent on delivering healthy babies to her clients. She's a hell of a threat to Donna and the Doctor and she possesses sonic technology (in the form of a sonic pen) to boot. Though I do wish that the Doctor hadn't so casually tossed away that sonic pen at the very end...

The big kicker, however, had to be the unexpected appearance of none other than the Doctor's former companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), who also unwittingly crosses paths with Donna--likely in pursuit of the Doctor herself--before vanishing into the ether. Something tells me that this won't be the last we see of Rose or this subplot. Are the walls between the dimensions bleeding through? Did Rose come through the Rift? Or is something completely different and far more sinister at work here? In any event, it was brilliant to see Rose, even if it was just for a brief minute and I cannot wait to see where this storyline goes.

Ultimately, I was pleased as punch to have Doctor Who back on the air and I am really liking the new interplay between the Doctor and Donna, especially as he did really need to think twice about inviting her aboard the TARDIS. The effect harkens back to a sort of 1960s tongue-in-cheek banter between the two of them as the almost-strangers take on the sort of in-fighting usually reserved for old married couples.

But I'm curious to know what you think: Are you a fast fan of Donna Noble? Do you miss Rose Tyler or Martha Jones? Which companion has proved to be the most memorable foil for the Doctor so far?

On the next Doctor Who ("The Fires of Pompei"), the Doctor and Donna travel to ancient Rome but find themselves in Pompei just before what the Doctor calls "Volcano Day," also known as the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which--you know--wiped out the entire city.

Am I Still Watching "The Office"?

I wasn't planning on continuing to write about NBC's The Office; my obsessive zeal for the series has sadly become something more akin to continued disappointment, something that many of my readers have indicated as well.

When I didn't comment on the latest installment ("Night Out"), I got a few emails from readers curious if I had in fact finally given up on the series altogether. It's safe to say that I haven't tuned out completely but the above statement holds true. I don't expect a lot from the series anymore, which has devolved into a sad shadow of itself, a thinly veiled sitcom that has now begun mining comedy from the wacky "situations" the characters find themselves in week to week (a beet farm! an NYC nightclub! a dinner party!) rather than the characters themselves.

The Office did used to move outside of the confines of the Dunder-Mifflin Scranton offices every now and then and when they did, it was a novel conceit that separated the mundane 9-to-5 existence that defined these characters... and provided the basis for much of the series' humor. And at its heart, that was what I loved most about the series. It wasn't scenes like this week's over the top cold open--which found Michael getting a peanut butter shampoo from Dwight to remove chewing gum from his hair--but scenes that cut to the bone about the quotidien repetition of these characters' lives, interspersed with a (more) realistic zaniness.

This week's episode was written by Mindy Kaling, whom I still think of as one of the series' most talented writers (along with Michael Schur). While I did find the A-story (Michael and Dwight surprise a coked-up Ryan in Manhattan and go clubbing with him) way OTT, it was the episode's B-story that actually did remind me of the series' glory days: after Jim hatches a plan to keep the Scranton branch working late Friday night (so they won't have to come in on Saturday), the gang discovers that they've been locked in... and quickly turn on super-couple Jim and Pam.

There were some genuinely squirm-inducing and yet funny moments here (the type that the series used to excel at), like when Toby boldly put his hand on Pam's knee--sitting next to Jim, no less--and then got so nervous, he announced he was moving to Costa Rica and then hopped the fence. Or Creed being right about the black security guard's name. Or even the gang getting upset with Pam was a novel conceit (she threw a football and hit Meredith in the face), though I am getting a little tired of Meredith being the office punching bag.

And yet it wasn't enough for me to come back around. I'll still finish out this season of The Office but I no longer look forward to the series each week and that is a sad testament to the level of disinterest I'm maintaining with this once-great series. Can they rediscover that spark again next season? Let's hope so but I won't be holding my breath...

On the next episode of The Office ("Did I Stutter?"), Stanley barks at Michael during a meeting, causing Michael to try to change Stanley's attitude; meanwhile, Dwight tries to buy Andy's car and Pam spends the night at Jim's but discovers an unexpected inconvenience.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother (CBS); Deal or No Deal (NBC; 8-10 pm); Gossip Girl (CW); Dancing With the Stars (ABC; 8-9:30 pm); Bones (FOX)

9 pm: Two and a Half Men/Rules of Engagement (CBS); One Tree Hill (CW); Samantha Who? (ABC; 9:30-10 pm); House (FOX)

10 pm: CSI Miami (CBS); Medium (NBC); The Bachelor: London Calling (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Gossip Girl.

The naughty teen soap continues tonight with a brand new episode! On tonight's episode ("Desperately Seeking Serena"): Serena's former partner in crime Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg) returns to Manhattan, Nate falls for social outcast Vanessa (no!), and Jenny meets a guy who could ensure her permanent popularity. I can't wait!

Link Tank: TV Blog Coalition Roundup for April 25-27

Televisionary is proud to be a member of the TV Blog Coalition. At the end of each week, we'll feature a roundup of content from our sister sites for your delectation.

This week, I dished about Torchwood's second season finale, was thrilled that guilty pleasure Gossip Girl returned with new episodes (and a Bass sweater for Machiavellian Chuck), praised Rob Thomas for his uncanny casting ability on drama pilot Good Behavior (landing former Arrested Development co-star Mae Whitman as Roxy), and thought that this week's 30 Rock was a triumph of comedic wit, with an extended homage to Amadeus.

Also: news about Lucy Liu joining the cast of Dirty Sexy Money, Gavin & Stacey heads to BBC America, Lloyd and Adwoa create a "chamber of love" on Last Restaurant Standing, FOX renews Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, and does anyone not think that Richard and Dale deserve a place in the final two on Top Chef?

But, ultimately, I was really all about the shape of things to come on Lost, which returned this week with a kick-ass installment focusing on Ben that raised as many questions as it answered (hello, Smokey!).

Elsewhere in the sophisticated TV-obsessed section of the blogosphere, members of the TV Blog Coalition were discussing the following items...

• Buzz played agent to Lauren Graham and asked what her next career move should be. (BuzzSugar)
• Sandie shared pictures from the set of Moonlight. (Daemon's TV)
• Marcia liveblogged the UK's BAFTA Television Awards, in which shows most Americans have never heard of took home the big prizes. (Pop Vultures)
• Rae listened in on a teleconference with Jason Dohring about the return of Moonlight and shares her favorite bits. (RTVW)
• You soon won't forget Sarah Marshall. Yep, Scooter can write uber-cheesy headlines with the best of them. (Scooter McGavin's 9th Green)
• This week, the TV Addict set the internet ablaze with his review of the highly anticipated BATTLESTAR GALACTICA prequel CAPRICA [the TV Addict]
• How I Met Your Mother introduces everyone to Vance's Canada! Welcome, eh! (Tapeworthy)
• TiFaux launched a new regular feature this week with Dan recruiting some of his gal pals for Ask a Lesbian About This Week's Work Out. This week, they addressed Jackie's new haircut and Rebecca's shouting for attention. (TiFaux)
• Jennifer was downright giddy after Robin and Barney's kiss on How I Met Your Mother and couldn't resist gushing about the Robin Sparkles-centered episode guest starring James Van Der Beek. And she can't stop singing, "I'm building sandcastles in the sand." (Tube Talk)
• Kate scoured casting notices until she was able to confirm that yes, there really will be a Wedding of the Year on Gossip Girl (TV Filter)

"They Changed the Rules": The Shape of Things to Come on "Lost"

I've been not-so patiently waiting for the return of Lost to the airwaves and I have to say that last night's episode--which brought with it death, revelations, and more mysteries--more than made up for the torturous wait.

Last night's episode of Lost ("The Shape of Things to Come") was a tantalizing mind-game of a puzzle, focusing on the engimatic character of Benjamin Linus, who--in a nifty bit of narrative legerdemain--is actually becoming more and more sympathetic to me (unlike, that is, my former favorite character Locke, who seems to be becoming more and more unhinged with every episode). Once again, we are offered morsels in the form of small answers to the very large questions posed by this maddeningly brilliant series but the further questions they raise are just as tasty as before: just "what" is Benjamin Linus? What are the "rules" established between him and archenemy Charles Widmore in their ongoing war? How did Ben summon the monster? Let's discuss.

Ben. That opening shot of an anorak-clad Ben waking up in the middle of the Sahara was absolutely gorgeous and shocking. While Ben later claims to Sayid that he took Desmond's boat (The Elizabeth) on the correct bearing and then got a plane from Fiji, we know he's lying. He was just as confused as we were to see that he was in the middle of the desert. The anorak, to me anyway, suggests that he didn't know where in the world he was going to end up or in what climate (or time, to be honest); it indicates that theories that Ben has a way off the island--by moving in space or time (to 2005) or, well, space/time--are accurate.

As for the anorak itself, it had a Dharma station logo on the upper right of the coat (one we've never seen before, a symbol within a spiral, that I believe refers to The Orchid) and the name Hallifax on the upper left. Hallifax is of course a reference to Edgar Hallifax, a.k.a. Marvin Candle, our friendly Dharma station orientation guide/research scientist/possible one-armed man. I'm not entirely sure why Ben's arm was cut and bleeding when he's found by some armed horsemen but Ben proves he's not playing around when he whips out a blackjack and then takes down the two men without breaking a sweat. Niiiice.

Loved that Ben's pseudonym in Tunisia (there's the Tunisian connection again, site of the polar bear finding) was Dean Moriarty, which has two connotations. First is the proper name itself which is that of the hero of Kerouac's book "On the Road" (which, come to think of it, is just what Ben is at the moment); second is of course Moriarty himself, the dogged archenemy of Sherlock Holmes. So which is it: hero or villain? That's what makes this storyline so damn fascinating is that I'm really starting to question week to week just what makes Ben tick. And the answer may be far more complex and less black and white than we've originally believed.

Death. I thought for sure that Claire was going to die in this episode, especially since Hurley had Aaron with him and Claire was in the cabin that exploded... and yet Sawyer managed to find her buried under some rubble and dazed but alive. (Loved that she called him Charlie for a second.) I thought for sure she was a goner (which would explain how Kate ended up in the future with Aaron) but I never for a moment thought that the producers would kill off Alex in such a heartbreaking fashion. After being taken hostage by Keamy's men (and triggering the 14J warning code when she turned off the sonic fence), she was forced to hear her adoptive father Ben call her a pawn and "admit" that she was not really his daughter... seconds before Keamy blew her brains out. Ben was SHOCKED that his distancing himself from Alex didn't produce the desired effect and he seemed genuinely confused that Keamy didn't let her go. But why would Keamy have not killed her, especially if she wasn't his daughter and therefore didn't invalidate the "rules"? Color me confused.

Sayid. While the episode's flashforwards belong squarely to Ben, I was glad to see that they also advanced one of the more complex storylines introduced this year as they explored just how Sayid ended up in Ben's employ. When we see Sayid, we're just as shocked as Ben to catch a glimpse of him on the news as he returns to Iraq for his wife's funeral. Ben, in the guise of a press photographer, tracks him to Iraq and learns that (A) Sayid did manage to finally track down his lost love Nadia in Los Angeles and married her and (B) she was murdered by a man who works for Charles Widmore who then followed Sayid to Iraq. I'm not entirely sure what was gained by removing Nadia from the playing field (or if the murder of the relatives of Oceanic Six will prove to be an ongoing plot point) but it definitely propelled Sayid to become Ben's assassin as he finds himself on a course of vengeance.

Charles Widmore. I absolutely loved the scene in which Ben confronted Charles Widmore in his London bedroom. After sneaking into a luxe apartment building (and nearly having to take out the doorman), Ben accesses the penthouse lair of his arch-nemesis. But instead of killing Widmore, he wakes him from his slumber, noting that Charles now sleeps with a bottle of whiskey (MacCutcheon, of course). Their conversation had me on the edge of my seat: Ben alleges that Keamy killing Alex changed the "rules" and that, in recompense, he'll kill Charles' daughter Penelope. (A situation that poses a problem as she is Desmond's constant.) I found it interesting that Charles believed Penelope sufficiently hidden (like Ben has concealed the island) as to prove this impossible and that Charles doesn't view Ben as a victim in this equation. He knows just "what" Ben is and where he came from and alleges that Ben took something from him (the island) years ago and he intends to get it back. The war has just escalated.

(Sidebar: As for Widmore's Australian accent in this scene, I'm not sure if that was an intentional change from his typical English accent or more the fact that actor Alan Dale's English accent wasn't, er, quite up to par. I found it extremely uneven as he seemed to slip into an Aussie or Yank accent even when he was meant to be English, surprising considering the Australian-born Dale does a flawless American accent.)

Ray. I was intriged when Ray, the ship's creepy doctor washes up on shore with his throat slit. Just how did he get there and why was he killed? The answer to the first part is easy (thrown overboard), the second slightly less easy (captain killed him) and then there's the revelation that the doctor is just fine aboard the Kahana, a fact that Faraday is eager to cover up. (Fortunately for us, Bernard understands Morse code.) We know that time runs differently on the ship than on the island, which means that while Ray is dead on the island, he's still alive on the boat when the Morse code conversation occurs. Which means, he hasn't been killed YET. But that's likely to change the next time we catch up with the freighter.

Smokey. I loved seeing Smokey in all his glory. Seemingly summoned by Ben from the mystery room concealed within the OTHER secret room in the bunker, Smokey takes on an even more menacing, malevolent form as he sweeps across the barracks, killing everything in its path and crackling with electricity. Ben clearly lied to Locke about not knowing what the monster was and, behind that hieroglyphics-covered wall lies the secret to the monster. Just what was down there? A Cerebus vent as indicated on the map in the Swan? Or something else? And why was Ben so filthy and covered in soot when he emerged? Hmmm.

Hurley. I had a feeling that while Ben and Locke might let Claire, Aaron, Sawyer, and Miles go back to the beach, there was no way in hell they were letting Hurley go with them. After all, he's the last one to have seen Jacob's cabin and the only way they are going to be able to locate it again. Hurley sadly accepted his fate, more willing to see everyone put their guns down than to try to escape his fate. Just why Hurley has become the keeper of the secret is intriguing to me (and what it means) as is the fact that Locke and Ben, so clearly favorite disciples of Jacob, cannot seem to find that ash-surrounded cabin. Just what they'll find there or what Jacob will tell them to do will have to wait for another day...

Jack. Poor Jack is swallowing antibiotics with abandon, claiming that he has a stomach flu, but it's clearly more serious than he's letting on. Moments like this totally remind me--in the best possible way--of Season One. Will Jack survive? Yes. Will his appendix rupture? No. While we know that Jack has to live (he does get off the island, after all), it's bound to be a tense situation as possibly Juliet is the only person who has the surgical skills to save Jack. Who will step up to lead them with Jack incapacitated? My guess: Kate.

Lost Literary Allusions of the Week. Besides for the aforementioned allusions to Sherlock Holmes and "On the Road," there were a few other literary references this week. The man Ben claims murdered Nadia (who is then shot down by Sayid) was named Ishmael, the narrator in Herman Melville's Moby Dick; it's also a Biblical name referring to the son of Abraham (and Hagar) whose half-brother was Isaac, the father of Jacob. (Hmmm.) The episode's title, "The Shape of Things to Come," is a reference to an H.G. Wells novel which recounts a history of the world, told from the future.

Next week on Lost ("Something Nice Back Home"), Kate and Juliet must work together to save Jack when his health is compromised; Sawyer, Claire, Miles, and Aaron head back to the beach but discover they are not out of the woods when they encounter Keamy along the way.

Betrayal in B Minor: A Question of Succession on "30 Rock"

How utterly fantastic was last night's episode of 30 Rock ("Succession")?

Increasingly, 30 Rock is becoming the brightest, shiniest spot in my television-viewing week, offering more belly laughs, throwaway lines, and blink and you miss it jokes than most typical seasons of other network comedies. Last night's brilliant episode, focusing on Don Geiss choosing his successor and Liz becoming a high-powered executive, was no exception; it was taut, elegantly crafted comedy that fused together wit and absurdity into one brilliant package.

After all, what other comedy series would reference Amadeus in a plot thread about Tracy Jordan fusing together video games and porn into one single package to bear his immortal legacy? I loved that a jealous Frank (who had devoted his life to porn) played Salieri to Tracy's Mozart and beautiful slow-mo montage of Dr. Spaceman rushing down the halls of 30 Rock, cloak billowing in his wake, as he then pauses at the vending machine for a snack.

And how hysterical was it that, when Leo finds Don Geiss in a diabetic coma, he tells Liz and Jack that he can't give Geiss a shot of something in the heart "because we don't really know where the heart is... it's different on every person." He then attempts to call for help, unsure whether he should dial 411 or 911. Getting information, he casually asks for "New York... diabetes repair." I don't know about you, but I couldn't stop laughing and had to rewind what came next because I was laughing so hard I couldn't hear what anyone was saying.

Loved the subplot with Tracy trying to find a way for his sons to be proud of him and the flashback to him bringing his son's "music stick" (read: flute) to school, only to discover that he had not been invited to Bring Your Dad to School Day... which invariably leads to Tracy dancing--sans shirt, of course--an embarrassing jig. The remembrance of this moment sends Tracy on a quest to create a lasting legacy for his children (whose photos he keeps hidden) and he doesn't need to turn to Eureka for a good idea this time.

One of the many hilarious lines of the evening that made me squeal with glee: "You've got the charm and spark of a young Leona Helmsley." - Geiss to corporate Liz, who has thrown away her dreams of living with gorillas in the wild for a slap-worthy salary. Of course, that tied with "Hey nerds, who has two thumbs, speaks limited French and didn't cry once today? This moi!" 'Nuff said.

Seeing Liz as a high-powered exec was a treat, especially with her corporate hairstyle. I thought she would bristle when Jack offered to make her his successor; she doesn't scream out corporate in any way, shape, or form. And yet she rose magnificently to the occasion, fitting in with Jack and his cronies, making a quick decision about microwave button classic which saves GE $2 million in research, and slyly handing Jack a tampon when he expresses sympathy for someone. I loved that Jack--who believes that hugging is "so ethnic"--would even consider Liz for the job, but, after all, she does always have his back, even going so far as to forcibly make out with rival Devon Banks ("I pretended he was a sandwich") on the elevator's security camera in order to give Jack further leverage with Geiss.

Devon of course is about to wed Don's freakish daughter Kathy Geiss, a woman prone to eating flowers, forgetting to wash her hands after using the toilet, sipping from juice boxes, and climbing into small, confining spaces. I love having the deliciously sleazy Devon (Will Arnett) on the series; Jack needs a rival to work off of and Devon fits the bill perfectly. It's the small touches that make him more than just a cardboard villain: the fact that he wore a low-cut top to his "sham bachelor party," or his weakness for one Kenneth Ellen Parcell.

And, despite admitting to Jack that he knew that Geiss had passed him over, Devon clearly seizes advantage of Geiss' diabetic coma (brought on when Liz forgets to get him something to eat at the bachelor party) in order to take control of GE, putting Kathy in charge as a figurehead and satisfying the even more freakish board of directors that a Geiss should sit atop GE. It's a clever gambit that pays off for Devon and the look of shock and outrage on Jack's face is unlike anything we've ever seen from him before. Just what this means for the power structure at GE/NBC remains to be seen.

I wouldn't have it any other way. Hell, I didn't even need to be "business drunk" to say that.

Next week on 30 Rock ("Sandwich Day"), it's the return of Liz's ex-boyfriend Floyd (Jason Sudeikis) who needs somewhere to stay overnight after his flight out of New York is canceled; Jack finds himself demoted to the 12th floor after Devon takes over GE, causing him to question his future with the company.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Ghost Whisperer (CBS); Most Outrageous Moments/Most Outrageous Moments (NBC); Friday Night SmackDown! (CW; 8-10 pm); America's Funniest Home Videos (ABC); 13 Going on 30 (FOX; 8-10 pm)

9 pm: Moonlight (CBS); Dateline NBC (NBC; 9-11 pm); Duel (ABC)

10 pm: NUMB3RS (CBS); 20/20 (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Sarah Jane Adventures on Sci Fi.

On tonight's episode of the Doctor Who spin-off ("Revenge of the Slitheen, Part 2"), the Slitheen's plot to blot out the sun takes Mr. Smith offline, forcing Sarah Jane and the kids to resort to subterfuge in order to stop the aliens. Afterwards, it's the first part of "Eye of the Gorgon," in which the gang investigates reports of a ghostly nun at a nursing home and uncovers a secret society devoted to a creature who can turn her victims to stone.

9 pm: Doctor Who on Sci Fi.

Season Four of Doctor Who continues tonight with "Partners in Crime," in which Catherine Tate's Donna (last seen in "The Runaway Bride") joins up with the Doctor to battle an alien plot involving a fad diet... which makes fat vanish along with people.

10 pm: Battlestar Galactica on Sci Fi.

On tonight's episode ("Escape Velocity"), Baltar's new messianic role creates some problems of faith for those who cling to their beliefs in the Lords of Kobol and a death (ahem, you know who) casts a pall on the Colonial fleet.

8-11 pm: BBC America.

Looking for a sci-fi alternative? If you happen to be staying in after a long work week, why not do it in true Anglophile style with back-to-back episodes of Coupling and new sketch comedy series That Mitchell and Webb Look, from the stars of Peep Show?

Former Bluth Foil Mae Whitman Tries on "Good Behavior"

Her?

In an inspired bit of casting, ABC has snagged Mae Whitman for drama pilot Good Behavior. Written and executive produced by Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars) and based on Kiwi series Outrageous Fortune, the plot revolves around the Wests, a Las Vegas family of thieves and low-lifes who are forced by their headstrong mother to become model members of society after their patriarch lands in prison with a five-year sentence. (For a more detailed look, here's my rundown of Thomas' hysterical pilot script.)

Whitman, best known perhaps for her star turn as George-Michael's devout girlfriend Ann Veal (a.k.a. Egg, Yam, and Ann-Hog) on Arrested Development, will star in Good Behavior's pilot as 16-year-old Roxy West, a plucky teen who creates a business out of selling the hall passes and excuse slips she has blackmailed from her high school's principal.

It's a role that Thomas would have undoubtedly cast Kristin Bell in a few years ago and I think Whitman will be absolutely perfect in this part. Those of us who saw her performance as Jamie Sommers' deaf sister in the original pilot of Bionic Woman know that Whitman can definitely pull off that chip on my shoulder the size of the Ritz sort of teen angst with ease and I think she'll be a good fit with the quirky comedy and soap antics of Good Behavior.

Also cast in the pilot: Patrick Adams (Lost, Friday Night Lights), who will play diametrically-opposite twins Van and Haden West (and, yes, their names' similarity to Van Halen is very, very intentional); one of whom is a sleezy lowlife and the other a successful lawyer who has tried to stay out of the family's, er, "business."

Still no news if Rene Russo has been cast in the critical role of West family matriarch Jackie. Fingers crossed that ABC does manage to lure Russo to television with this dynamic role... and that Good Behavior lands a series order.

Stay tuned.

A Night at the Improv on "Top Chef"

It's always funny to me on reality series how the contestants seem perennially surprised by the lengths the producers will go to to pull one over on them. Latest case in point? Last night's episode of Top Chef ("Improv"), which had the cheftestants get all dolled up to go to a Second City improv show... only to learn that they they were there for an ulterior purpose.

Their reactions reminded me of last season's surprise victims in Miami, when they got dressed up for a night on the town, only to learn that they'd be cooking food for late-night partiers out of catering trucks. Hee. Here, they at least managed to get some laughs in before the real test began and, oh, what a test it was: forced to pair up on dishes inspired by colors, feelings, and ingredients thrown out by the crowd at random, they'd have to construct dishes that incorporated all of these elements into one tasty offering.

Before that, however, the contestants had to try to live down the Top Chef curse: dessert. In a Quickfire Challenge overseen by chef Johnny Iuzzini of Jean-George, the chefs had a half-hour to devise a dessert dish that would knock the socks off of Johnny and Padma; the winner would get their recipe featured in the upcoming "Top Chef Cookbook." I wasn't all that surprised to see that most chefs went straight for the chocolate and, while none of the contestants are trained pastry chefs, I had hoped to see a little more originality out of them. Some, however, exceeded my expectations, offering dishes that were composed, elegant, and utterly unique. Dale's Halo-Halo with shaved ice, avocado, mango, kiwi, and nuts looked absolutely gorgeous and tasty, proving that one need not measure baking powder--nor indeed bake anything--in order to craft a dessert dish. The same holds true for Richard's awe-inspiring dish of banana "scallops" with banana guacamole and chocolate ice cream. It was a forward-thinking dish that was assertive and creative. I knew he'd be taking home immunity.

As for the others, there was a general lack of flair in the execution and a sullenness (perhaps due from the lack of enthusiasm to the task) to some of the dishes. Yeah, Spike may have attempted a souffle with his pineapple-rum raisin souffle with toasted coconut, but he still ended up in the bottom three for a wholly unsatisfying dish. (Ha!) Andrew's banana and chocolate ravioli with pudding just didn't really hit the mark, in terms of taste or presentation. Antonia's bruleed lemon curd with lemon cake and berries did not go down a hit. While Lisa's yoghurt with fruit puree, fried wontons and strawberies earned her a spot in the top three dishes, I thought it looked a foul mess of a dish and was completely unappetizing to me. And Mark should have made just one larger pavlova and topped it fruit and cream rather than making an odd assortment of mini-pavlovas for no real purpose.

Onto the Elimination Challenge, then. I thought that some of the chefs really got behind the whole essence of this challenge, with its improv setting and its quirkiness, sparking to the notion that they could be really creative and off-the-wall... while dodging potential bullets from the producers who forced them to pack up and move to another location and make everything without the aid of electronic cooking equipment. I knew that Spike would do the soup he wanted to do a few weeks back, if only as a bitchslap to Antonia. Here, he and Andrew were saddled with yellow love vanilla and transformed those disparate words into an elegant and slightly spicy-sweet acorn and butternut squash soup with vanilla creme fraiche, quite possibly the best thing either one of them has cooked so far in the competition.

Up next was Jennifer and Stephanie who had orange turned-on asparagus and took that term in the wrong direction: a menage a trois of orange with caramelized goat cheese, asparagus, salad, and olive tapenade, served on a soggy, phallic-shaped crouton. The crouton managed to be both soggy and too course at the same time and the entire dish was overwhelmed by the goat cheese, rather than focusing on the asparagus. There was way too much going on here for one dish and instead of seeming turned-on, it seemed outright schitzophrenic. Sigh. I had higher hopes for these two in this challenge.

Of course, I was utterly thrilled with Richard and Dale's dish; these two manage to surprise and delight me each week with their innovation and creativity. At this point, I'd love to see them in the final three with Stephanie and maybe Antonia (if she gets some perspective); they constantly embody the virtues of a top chef to me with each week: dynamic spirit, vision, and spark. Here, they thought entirely outside the box with their green perplexed tofu dish: a tofu steak marinated in beef fat with green curry. The dish was elegantly composed and, yes, perplexing... in a good way. Marinating the bland tofu in rendered beef fat (and injecting that coal-grilled flavor) was a thing of genius, reinterpreting the words "tofu steak" in an unexpected way. The curry was a thing of beauty as well: spicy, sweet, sour, and bursting with flavor. These two worked astonishingly well together again, considering they are both headstrong individuals with strong feelings about cuisine. Bravo, guys.

Mark and Nikki sort of flew under the radar with their dish, derived from purple depressed bacon: a pork loin with sweet potatoes, glazed bacon, grape sauce, jus, and Brussels sprouts. It looked good and captured the essence of the dish but it didn't wow me in any way and I thought bacon was pretty easy to work with. Still, a good effort that at least took the challenge seriously.

Finally, there was Lisa and Antonia. I just knew that this team would present a problem and that Lisa would whine and complain no matter what the outcome would be; she's gotten increasingly negative and hostile throughout the competition and now just seeing her on-screen is enough to make me roll my eyes. They landed drunken polish sausage and immediately started giving attitude about working with polish sausage which Lisa later told the judges she "would never work with." Um, you're a chef. There shouldn't be a single ingredient that you refuse to cook and that comment just showed your absolute closed-mindedness. Instead, they set out to do a fish dish (whah?) of sea bass with purple potato puree, chorizo, and tequila sauce, substituting the chorizo for the polish sausage and discussing their dish before downing a shot of tequila, but not offering the guests any. I thought that this dish completely did not follow the challenge's parameters and should have been automatically disqualified for failing to include the main ingredient; Lisa and Antonia lamely argued that improvisation was part of the task and they improv'd their way to chorizo. Even so, the sea bass took the center stage here and the dish itself looked sloppy and inelegant.

Ultimately, the judges called out Lisa and Antonia and Jennifer and Stephanie for their dishes but I had no idea that they would send Jennifer home. Sure, I was happy that Stephanie was saved from elimination but I was really hoping that Lisa's attitude at judges' table would work against her and she'd get cut from the pack. Sigh.

Next on Top Chef ("Common Threads"), the contestants are tasked with making a healthy meal using a single main ingredient... in the microwave, Table 52's Art Smith drops by as a guest judge, and Mark tells Tom Colicchio that he thinks the Craft guru doesn't like him very much. Ouch.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Survivor: Micronesia--Fans vs. Favorites (CBS); My Name is Earl/Scrubs (NBC); Smallville (CW); Ugly Betty (ABC); Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? (FOX; 8-10 pm)

9 pm: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS); The Office/30 Rock (NBC); Supernatural (CW); Grey's Anatomy (ABC)

10 pm: Without a Trace (CBS); ER (NBC); Lost (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Ugly Betty.

Yay! Ugly Betty returns with brand new episodes, starting tonight with "Twenty-Four Candles," in which Betty's plans to spend her 24th birthday with Henry are upset by Charlie's surprise visit, but Gio may have a solution to her quandary; Wilhelmina hints to Daniel that her sister Renee has some dark secrets in her past.

9 pm: The Office.

Yes, it's been really sub-par this season, but I'll keep watching just in case it suddenly improves. On tonight's episode ("Night Out"), Michael and Dwight ambush Ryan in Manhattan for a night of clubbing; back in Scranton, the gang is unhappy to learn that they have to come into work on a Saturday for Ryan's website project; Jim's plan to save them backfires.

9:30 pm: 30 Rock.

On tonight's brand-new episode ("Succession"), Don Geiss finally decides to name Jack his successor as chairman of NBC parent company GE but a health complication puts Jack's promotion in jeopardy, while Tracy believes his son is embarrassed by his career. And is that Will Arnett's Devon Banks hiding in the corner over there?

10 pm: Lost.

OMG. It's finally here. Lost returns from hiatus tonight with a brand new episode ("The Shape of Things to Come") in which Locke's camp comes under enemy fire, Jack tries to identify a body that has washed ashore, and we might just find out whether Alex and Rousseau live or die after being shot at in the jungle. I can't wait!

Lucy Liu to Flaunt "Dirty Sexy Money" for ABC?

I really miss Dirty Sexy Money.

When I first saw an early cut of the original pilot for the ABC nighttime soap last May, there is no way I ever would have imagined myself uttering those words, but cut to April, several months after Dirty Sexy Money went on hiatus (thanks to the WGA strike of last fall), and I am aching to catch up with the Darlings.

While the soap won't return to ABC until next fall (damn!), the series may return with a new cast member: Lucy Liu.

Liu is in talks with the network to join the cast of Dirty Sexy Money as a series regular, should her struggling freshman drama Cashmere Mafia not return next season. (It's looking increasingly likely that the female-skewing drama won't be renewed.) She would play an attorney, one possibly connected to Nick George (Peter Krause), the Darlings, or someone else altogether.

Me, I'm hoping she's in league with Simon Elders (Blair Underwood), where she can channel her so-good-when-she's-bad moxie into a full-fledged villainess.

Meanwhile, while Liu will join a cast that included Krause, Underwood, Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh, William Baldwin, Glenn Fitzgerald, Zoe McLellan, and Seth Gabel, one of the Darlings won't be returning in a full-time capacity. Samaire Armstrong, who plays younger Darling daughter Juliet, will be downgraded to recurring next season.

Juliet or no, I cannot wait for Dirty Sexy Money to return this fall.

"Gavin & Stacey" Heads to BBC America

Looking for your next British telly series fix?

Look no further as BBC America announced their latest comedy acquisition: the delightfully wry Gavin & Stacey, which will launch on the digital cabler this August.

Starring Joanna Page (Love Actually), Mathew Horne (The Catherine Tate Show), Ruth Jones (Saxondale), James Corden (Teachers), Alison Steadman (Life is Sweet), and Rob Brydon (Little Britain), Gavin & Stacey tells the story of Englishman Gavin and Welsh-born Stacey, who only ever spoken on the telephone; when they finally meet up, it's true love, despite their different backgrounds and the pressures of their quirky families and respective best friends Smithy and Nessa, who only seem to get along when they're drunk.

The series was created by co-stars Jones and Corden and, like all great British series, a US adaptation is already being developed at NBC. (Gee, that took long.)

I cannot wait for Gavin & Stacey to make its way across the pond. BBC America has wisely acquired both seasons of the comedy series--with six half-hour episodes in the first season and seven episodes in the second--and will hopefully air these seasons back-to-back, giving us thirteen weeks of one of the quirkiest, funniest British comedies to come along in a long time.