[Televisionary]

"What's dead is dead. It's too late now." - John Casey The push and pull between personal desire and professional responsibility have been at the beating heart of Chuck since the very beginning of the series but never moreso than in this, its third season, which has seen its troika of spies have to make some rather tough choices in pursuit of maintaining a balance between the two. In this week's episode ("Chuck Versus the Tic Tac"), written by Rafe Judkins and Lauren LeFranc and directed by Patrick Norris, several characters had to come to terms with fully realizing and accepting the consequences of their decisions, past and present. Are our dreams constant? Can they change? What happens when we get what we think we've always wanted? For Chuck, Casey, Sarah, Devon, and Ellie, each of them had to cross a personal Rubicon this week as they examined their own lives, their dreams, and their current realities. Ghosts have a nasty way at turning up at une...

Looking to delve deeper into the world of FX's new drama series Justified ? Head over to The Daily Beast, where you can read my feature on FX's Justified , entitled "The Gritty New Elmore Leonard Crime Drama." In the piece, I talk with executive producer Graham Yost, series lead Timothy Olyphant, and legendary novelist Elmore Leonard about the series, its genre roots, and the enduring power of the Western. Justified premieres tongiht at 10 pm ET/PT on FX.

"All I want is an opportunity." HBO has released a new promo for its upcoming period drama Boardwalk Empire , from Terence Winter and Martin Scorsese, which launches this fall. Preview Trailer #2 I don't know about you but autumn can't come quickly enough. Bring on Prohibition! Boardwalk Empire launches this fall on HBO.

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing. Syfy is said to be exploring the possibility of spinning off its Battlestar Galactica franchise once more and is said to be developing another spin-off series--besides for the currently airing Caprica --that would this time be set in space. "We're looking for other ways to spin off Battlestar beyond Caprica ," Syfy's Mark Stern told The Hollywood Reporter . "That world is so rich. We're sitting down with (executive producer) Ron Moore and his team. It would not necessarily be a traditional series." No other details were available. The cabler also ordered a 90-minute pilot for drama Three Inches , from writer Harley Peyton and executive producer Bob Cooper. Project, from Fox Television Studios, revolves around a slacker who can move objects three inches with his mind and who teams up with other people who have useless superpowers. ( Hollywood Reporter ) Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello is ...

Mark your calendars for another trip down south to Bon Temps. HBO today announced a start date for Season Three of vampire drama series True Blood , which will return to the pay cabler this summer for another season of blood-stained murder, mischief, and mayhem. The Alan Ball-executive produced supernatural drama series will launch its third season on Sunday, June 13th. Twelve episodes are on tap for this summer, as we learn just who or what kidnapped Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) from the restaurant where he and Sookie (Anna Paquin) were having a romantic dinner. In other words: get ready to sink your fangs into this summer.

It's amazing that the actors of Parks and Recreations are ever able to get through a scene without cracking each other up repeatedly. I had the good fortune of attending Saturday night's Tig and Friends show at Largo at the Coronet, where The Sarah Silverman Program 's Tig Nataro hosted an evening of comedy centered around the cast of NBC's hysterical comedy Parks and Recreation . Needless to say, I never never laughed quite so much or so hard in my entire life. Parks and Recreation 's Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Aziz Ansari, and Retta were on hand to treat us with everything from songs to stand-up routines, and a Donohue-style talk show setting where Notaro and the audience asked them a range of inappropriate, offensive, and hilarious questions and the cast made some startling confessions. (For example, Plaza told us that she was an NBC Page and recounted a situation where she had to attend sensitivity training; in another anecdote, she told us about...

Half the fun of watching the newly released eleven-disc The Ruth Rendell Mysteries Collection is seeing some familiar faces--such as Colin Firth, James Callis, James D'Arcy, Amanda Redman, and many others--when they were significantly younger and, in some cases, were just embarking on their theatrical careers. The other half is, of course, falling under the spell of the master mystery writer Ruth Rendell (who also publishes novels under the pseudonym of Barbara Vine). As a longtime Rendell fanatic, I was thrilled to learn that Acorn Media was releasing seventeen televised feature-length adaptations of Rendell's work--which aired in the UK on ITV between 1987 and 2000 (and on some PBS stations)--in a single, hefty box set. Arriving under the title The Ruth Rendell Mysteries Collection , the box set collects such adaptations as Master of the Moor, Vanity Dies Hard, Going Wrong, The Secret House of Death, and The Fallen Curtain , to name but a few, as well as three Inspector Wexf...

Looking to discuss the latest episode of CBS' fantastic reality series The Amazing Race ? Head over to the Los Angeles Times /Show Tracker to read my latest piece, entitled " The Amazing Race : Baguettes and Doughboys," where you can read my take on the latest episode, what the cowboys did wrong, how the running order got so entirely messed up, and much more. Sound off in the comments section and be sure to come back next week as I'll be discussing each episode of The Amazing Race all season long. Next week on The Amazing Race ("Cathy Drone?"), the seven remaining teams depart the Pit Stop at the church in Massiges, France; Caite and Brent's relationship hits the rocks and the two continue to bicker and fight.

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. It was only a matter of time before someone snapped up River Tam. Former Firefly and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles star Summer Glau, who most recently appeared in a multiple-episode story arc on Dollhouse this season, has landed one of the leads in NBC's vigilante drama pilot The Cape . Project, from writer Tom Wheeler and directed by Simon West, revolves around a a disgraced former cop (David Lyons), framed for a crime he didn't commit, who becomes a costumed vigilante in order to clear his name. Glau will star opposite Lyons, James Frain, and Dorian Missick, and will play Orwell, described as "a cute and intrepid investigative blogger who fearlessly goes after corrupt cops and costumed bad guys" and who "gets physical and is quite capable of kicking ass." If that isn't a part made for Glau, I don't know what is. ( Hollywood Reporter ) Los Angeles Times ' Denise Martin talks to Pa...

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Katherine Heigl will be departing Grey's Anatomy for good this time, citing unnamed sources. "Series creator Shonda Rhimes has agreed to release the fast-rising movie star from her contract. It’s now up to ABC Studios and Heigl’s reps to hash out a final exit agreement," writes Ausiello. "After taking more than half of the current season off to make another movie and connect with her adopted daughter, Heigl was scheduled to return to the Grey’s set on March 1 to begin work on the five remaining episodes of the season. There’s just one problem: March 1 came and went and there was no Heigl." Long story, short: Heigl's final episode as Izzie has already aired and Heigl will not be returning to the set of Grey's Anatomy . ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) UK network E4 has commissioned two additional seasons of teen drama Skins , ...

Missing ABC's sci-fi series V ? You're not alone. I caught up with new showrunner Scott Rosenbaum for a one-on-one interview about what's coming up for Erica Evans and the resistance in the next eight episodes of V , which returns at the end of the month. Head over to the Los Angeles Times /Show Tracker site to read my interview with Rosenbaum , in which we talk about "rodent desire," multiple pregnancies, the similarities between Erica and Anna, what's to come, and much more. Beware, though, my interview with Rosenbaum contains major spoilers! V returns on Tuesday, March 30th at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC.

With my head spinning after this week's episode of Lost on Tuesday night, I didn't get a chance to watch White Collar 's fantastic first season finale until last night. It was definitely worth the wait. The season finale of White Collar ("Out of the Box"), written by Jeff Eastin and directed by Kevin Bray, offered further pressure to the already strained central relationships within the series, pushing both Neal (Matthew Bomer) and Peter (Tim DeKay) to make some hard choices, as Neal pursued the music box and his always-just-out-of-reach true love Kate and Peter sought to bring down the shady OPR Agent Garrett Fowler (Noah Emmerich) and stop Neal from making a disastrous decision. Plus, it featured the long-awaited return of Marsha Thomason's Agent Diana Lancing, who I've missed terribly since she disappeared after the White Collar pilot. (No worries, Diana fans, she's sticking around for Season Two.) So what did I think of the season finale? Let...