[Televisionary]

In the U.K.'s smash hit Downton Abbey , coming to PBS Sunday, the period drama is reinvented for a new generation. After all of the scrapes with The Daily Mail , the praise from yours truly , and huge ratings in the UK, Julian Fellowes' sumptuous costume drama Downton Abbey finally reaches American shores this weekend. Over at The Daily Beast, I spoke with creator Lord Fellowes and stars Dan Stevens and Hugh Bonneville about Downton Abbey for my latest feature, entitled " Downton Abbey Comes to Masterpiece " , in which I also look at the drama series as a condition-of-England piece and its relationship to another British import, the return of Upstairs, Downstairs . Downton Abbey premieres Sunday evening at 9 pm ET/PT as part of PBS' Masterpiece Classic . Check your local listings for details.

Winter is coming... Well, not that winter, not just yet. While we continue the long slog until April when HBO launches its adaptation of Game of Thrones , there's quite a lot of new and returning television series to keep us entertained in the meantime. Over at The Daily Beast, I offer "16 Shows to Watch This Winter," a round-up that includes such series as Episodes, Shameless, Big Love, Downton Abbey, Parks and Recreation, Portlandia, Off the Map, The Chicago Code, Lights Out, Archer, Justified, The Killing, Body of Proof , and others. In other words: quite a fair bit coming up. Which of these new and returning shows are you most excited about? Head to the comments section to discuss.

When we last saw the scaly-skinned aliens and human resistance fighters on ABC's invasion drama V , the Visitors' high commander Anna (Morena Baccarin) had unleashed a swath of red across the planet, offering a cliffhanger ending that placed every character in jeopardy. Just what was this so-called Red Sky? What did it symbolize? And had Anna's master plan for the human race finally come to fruition? When we pick up with V , which returns tonight after a lengthy hiatus with the apocalytpic "Red Rain," we're given some of the answers to those questions and a hell of a lot more over the next three episodes, which were provided to press for review. In fact, answers seem to be the name of the game, as showrunner Scott Rosenbaum has made it his mission to remove the cloak of mystery from around several long-gestating plots. Before these three episodes are over, viewers will learn just what the red sky phenomenon was all about, will get a glimpse at a Visitor sans h...

The proof of the pudding, as they say, is in the eating. Which means, if I can get on my soapbox for a minute, that in order to judge something, one ought to experience it first hand. One can't know how the pudding has turned out until one actually tastes it. I was asked last week--while I was on vacation with my wife--for an interview by a journalist from The Daily Mail, who got in touch to talk to me about PBS' upcoming launch of ITV's period drama Downton Abbey , which stars Hugh Bonneville, Dame Maggie Smith, Dan Stevens, Elizabeth McGovern, and a host of others. (It launches on Sunday evening as part of PBS' Masterpiece Classic ; my advance review of the first season can be read here , while my interview with Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes and stars Dan Stevens and Hugh Bonneville can be read here .) Normally, I would have refused, just based on the fact that I was traveling and wasn't working, but I love Downton Abbey and am so enchanted with the proj...

Happy New Year, everyone! I'm back after a much needed vacation. I hope your holidays were as lovely as mine, which included playing host to some visiting family, a luxurious trip to Napa with my wife, and more screeners than you can shake a TiVo remote at. Yes, we watched a host of DVDs for new and returning television series, including Shameless, Big Love, Lights Out, Episodes, Justified, V, The Chicago Code, Breaking In, Harry's Law, The Cape , and much more. With the Television Critics Association's Winter Press Tour just a few days away, there's still a lot more to get through before the beginning of the twice-yearly critics' gathering. But I'm curious to know what you were all up to and what upcoming television you're most looking forward to over the next few weeks? Can't wait for the return of those scaly aliens on V ? Looking to head down the pub with the Gallaghers on Showtime's Shameless ? Tip your hat at Timothy Olyphant's Raylan Given...