[Televisionary]

I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised this early morning in Los Angeles. The Emmy nominees were announced this morning and I have to commend them for showering such love onto diverse and unique series such as Big Love, Mad Men, 30 Rock, Breaking Bad, Little Dorrit, Flight of the Conchords, , and Damages , even though Battlestar Galactica failed to garner a single nomination in the major categories. Hell, one of the talented troika of female leads on AMC's Mad Men --Elisabeth Moss--even landed a nomination, as did the entire main cast of 30 Rock ! So, something's right in Hollywood for a change. Meanwhile, FOX's Family Guy snagged the first outstanding comedy series nomination for an animated series... in fifty years. (Not since The Flintstones has an animated comedy scored a nomination.) Something which sadly The Simpsons was never able to achieve in its heyday. So which series and actors landed Emmy nominations? Let's talk about the major categories. (The

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. Just shortly after the airing of Lost 's 100th episode, The New York Times ' Dave Itzkoff recalls a recent interview with showrunner Damon Lindelof about he and the writing staff are preparing for the end of Lost in May 2010. "I think one of our biggest concerns is reaching the climax of the story too soon – you have to time it right, you have to walk that line between giving a steady supply of story and character pathos and mysteries being answered along the way, so that the audience doesn’t feel like it all comes in one big chunk," said Lindelof. "But then if you do it too soon, they kind of feel like, 'I got everything that I cared about halfway through the season, so why am I still watching?' And it’s terrifying. Finally, we’re going to do it. There’s no excuses, we don’t get to say, 'We didn’t get to end the show on our own terms. They kept us on the air three years longer than we wanted to be.

“It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us absolution." - Oscar Wilde Patty Hewes has always been plagued by nightmares. Perhaps its the fact that hers is a guilty conscience, no matter how much she might try to hide behind the seemingly impregnable armor she wears so tightly around herself. In the second season finale of Damages ("Trust Me"), Patty is fighting off attacks from all quarters, from her lecherous husband Phil and her headstrong son Michael to her treacherous protege to a widespread conspiracy that involves a Washington power broker, a corrupt FBI investigation, and a duplicitous energy tycoon. It's the very weight of the forces mounted against her that propel her into a nightmare in which she's forced to face up to the betrayal of everyone around her, as she sees the men in her life--both past and present--laughing at her and then must come face to face with Ellen herself, a woman she too sought to destroy. But does Patty destroy Ellen i

Murder will out. It always does in the end and secrets, long buried, have a nasty way of being unearthed when you least expect it. This week's penultimate episode of Damages ("Look What I Dug Up This Time") ratcheted up the tension as we finally learned the truth about what happened to Christine Purcell the night of the gala, Ellen made her move against Patty and dragged Tom Shayles into the FBI's orbit, and Patty confronted Phil about the damage he had done to her and engineered a face-to-face with Walter Kendrick himself. I wondered just when things would start to come together and last night's installment did just that as the Purcell's dog literally dug up the past, a charred universal remote that unleashed a domino effect that threatens to topple UNR's entire case and send at least one man to prison. We now know what's been withheld from us for so long: just what happened that night between Christine and Daniel after the gala. He told Christine th

Was it just me or was that scene in Patty's clothing-strewn bedroom between Patty and Ellen one of the best showdowns in the history of the series? Last night's episode of Damages ("London, Of Course") saw Patty get an emotional punch to the gut as Ellen uncovered proof of Phil's philandering ways and hired her own private investigator to connect David's murder with Arthur Frobisher and Calder Protective Services. Meanwhile, Claire Maddox made a bold play for control of UNR now that she knows the truth about Walter Kendrick... and was betrayed by the man she herself sought to sell out. Yes, the scales fell from all of their eyes: from Patty's, Ellen's, and Claire's as they finally saw the truth about a number of things: a cheating husband's sloppiness, a boss' all-knowing glare, a mentor's dismissal. Claire. I have to say that Claire Maddox has become one of my favorite characters this season and has proven to be a worthy adversary--an

Ah, how the plot thickens... This week's episode of Damages ("Uh oh, Out Come The Skeletons") featured quite a few reveals about some troubling developments this season and forced Patty to come to terms with her own issues of abandonment when faced with her teenage son Michael growing up (and, um, getting a girlfriend who is at least twice his age). And it finally revealed just what has really been going on with those often-shifty FBI agents, Warner and Harrison. Which made me feel better as it proved I wasn't just paranoid when it came to those two. (Proving that old adage that just because you're paranoid doesn't mean people aren't out to get you.) The Visitor. Judging from the episode's beginning and closing scenes, it does look as though Ellen's interrogation of Patty is at the behest of Agent Warner, who is watching the scene in a nearby surveillance truck. However, Ellen's decision to squeeze the trigger? Not really on the agenda. Warne

The enemy is closing in. On this week's episode of Damages ( "You Got Your Prom Date Pregnant") , Patty went on the offensive against the FBI, Messer moved Wes into place, and Patty's husband Phil became a bigger player in a conspiracy that threatens to ensnare nearly every character on this serpentine series. If there's one thing you don't want, even if you are the FBI, it's Patty coming after you and yet that's just what Patty does, bringing the battle right into the New York field office. Something's definitely fishy with this federal investigation of Patty Hewes , something that involves the deputy director, and I am hoping that the next few episodes get to the bottom of this intriguing twist. Tom. I'm very curious to see just what events precipitate Tom's firing from Hewes & Associates. After all, Patty DID fire him in Season One... even if it was just a fake firing so that Tom could work behind the scenes. Still, something tru

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. Former Gilmore Girls star Alexis Bledel will guest star in NBC's two-hour series finale of ER , where she will play a new intern named Julie Wise in the finale, which focuses on a 24 hour-long shift at County General Hospital. Casting marks Bledel's first major television appearance since the end of Gilmore Girls on the CW. Elsewhere, former Grey's Anatomy cast member Melissa George has been cast as the female lead in CBS' untitled US Attorney drama pilot from writer/executive producer Frank Military; George will play Susan, an ADA and ex-wife of the section chief (Michael Lange). ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) Katie Cassidy ( Supernatural ) has been cast in CW's drama pilot Melrose Place , an update of the 1990s soap where she will play Ella Flynn, "an up-and-coming publicist with a big career ahead of her." Steven R. McQueen ( Everwood ), meanwhile, has been cast as one of the leads i

I've received a lot of emails from readers wondering where this week's discussion of FX's Damages is and I have to make apologies for not getting it up yesterday, but sadly didn't get to watch Damages this week until the day after it aired. But this is Damages we're talking about so I didn't want to disappoint as there's quite a lot to discuss. This week's sensational episode of Damages ("They Had to Tweaze That Out of My Kidney"), written by Aaron Zelman, answered some lingering questions in many audience members' minds and dealt beautifully with the mysteries surrounding Uncle Pete, The Visitor, and Patty's personal life... all while introducing a new mystery in the form of The Red File. There also seems to be a bit of confusion stemming from one of the episode's biggest shockers so let's dive in and discuss "They Had to Tweaze That Out of My Kidney." Uncle Pete. I'm glad that the series' creators decided

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. Kate isn't going anywhere, any time soon: Reps for Evangeline Lilly have denied a recent report on Zap2it.com that claimed that the Lost star was seeking work on another television project for this fall and have maintained that the actress is under contract on Lost until May 2010, when the series ends. We have no idea how this rumor got started," Lilly's rep told Michael Ausiello, "and whoever started it didn’t call us or ABC to verify the validity of it, for which there is none." ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) UPDATE : E! Online's Kristin has spoken with Lilly herself, who said that she isn't leaving Lost anytime soon. "I am very happy on Lost ," said Lilly, "and have no reason to look anywhere else for a home." ( E! Online's Watch with Kristin ) Brittany Snow ( American Dreams ) will star in the Gossip Girl prequel spin-off, currently being referred to in the