[Televisionary]

I already spoke in general terms about the season premiere of Top Chef over in my advance review of the episode , but now that the episode has aired, we can get down to the details of the food that the cheftestants prepared this week. First episodes are always tricky as there are a lot of new contestants and it's often hard to keep track of all of them, particularly when there are seventeen of them being introduced all at once. But this is Top Chef , after all, so it's only typical that the strongest performers would stand out in the first week... along with some of those who might be destined to be packing their knives sooner rather than later. This week's episode of Top Chef ("What's Your Constituency?") found the new crop of contenders heading to Washington D.C., where they were immediately put through their paces in a round-robin Quickfire Challenge--with only four chefs actually getting to create a dish--before heading into their first Elimination

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing. SPOILER! E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos is reporting that Eddie Cibrian is leaving CSI: Miami . "With original castmember—-and fan fave!—-Adam Rodriguez (Delko) returning this fall, a source close to the series confirms Eddie's departure, and tells me the Powers That Be are more interested in focusing on the core cast next season," writes Dos Santos, "which eliminates the need for the poor Cardoza character." Meanwhile, Dos Santos has the dirt on just how Cirbian's Cardoza will be written out of the crime procedural, but--beware!--it's highly spoilery. ( E! Online's Watch with Kristin ) April Lee Hernandez ( ER ) has been cast in a recurring role on Season Five of Showtime's serial killer drama Dexter . She'll play a police officer in the homicide department of Miami Metro. Hernandez's casting comes on the heels of news that Julia Stiles, Shawn Hatosy, and Maria Doyle Kennedy have

Before we can even catch our collective breath after the end of Top Chef Masters , Bravo has brought back the original Top Chef to the lineup, beginning with tonight's season premiere ("What's Your Constituency?"). While I've loved seeing master chefs hone their craft even further on Top Chef Masters , I have to say that I'm really excited by the return of Top Chef itself. There's an even fiercer air of competition from these chefs, many of whom are just beginning their culinary careers... and are therefore less likely to play nice and be as helpful as the masters. Which means more drama, inevitably. Heading to Washington D.C., this season of Top Chef finds the seventeen new contestants attempting to outdo their competitors in the nation's capital, which means that the setting is only too apt for the backstabbing and manipulation likely to unfold as this season's episodes get underway. In the first installment alone, we're treated to

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. Vulture's Josef Adalian is reporting that Kevin Spacey is in attached to star in Rod Lurie's drama pilot The Crux , about a charismatic cult leader, which is currently being pitched to various networks. (Should the project go forward, Spacey would executive produce with Lurie, Dana Brunetti, and Marc Frydman.) While Adalian reports that talks have begun between Spacey's camp and Showtime (as well as possibly HBO), Deadline's Nellie Adreeva adds that the project is currently being pitched to Showtime, HBO, FX, and Starz, with all four said to be in the running to land the much buzzed project from Lurie ( Commander In Chief ), who will write the script. Timing, however, may be a key factor. "One stumbling block could be Spacey's schedule," writes Adalian. "In addition to various film roles, a big chunk of Spacey's day planner is filled fulfilling (and tweeting about) his obligations as artistic

AMC today released the first photo of Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes from the set of the cabler's upcoming supernatural drama The Walking Dead , set to premiere this October. Robert Kirkman, creator/writer of the comic and executive producer on the series says: "Writing this book for the past seven years I've gotten very close to the character of Rick," said Robert Kirkman, who wrote the comic on which The Walking Dead is based, and who will serve as an executive producer on the AMC drama. "Andrew Lincoln embodies every aspect of the character that fans know and love. After seeing this photo I don't think that there will be a doubt in anyone's mind that he's perfect for the role." A larger version of the photo can be found below. Here's how AMC is positioning the series: " The Walking Dead tells the story of the months and years that follow after a zombie apocalypse. It follows a group of survivors, led by police officer Rick Grimes, w

It was inevitable, really. One of the quirkier pilots this season, ABC's Edgar Floats is getting reconceived . It's a shame as the pilot, from creator Rand Ravich ( Life ) was one of the few beacons of hope (and creativity) in a season that's otherwise overflowing with formulaic procedurals and tired professional-based genres (doctor, lawyer, cop) rather than genuine originality. Other than Robert Patrick, the entire cast--including the perfectly cast Tom Cavanagh and Alicia Witt--will be replaced and the potential series--which received an order for six additional scripts--will likely be refashioned to be less edgy, less quirky, less smart. In other words, all of the very things that made it stand out from the pack in the first place. I had the chance to watch the original pilot for Edgar Floats a few weeks back (after loving the pilot script) and instantly fell head over heels in love with it, raving about the shot pilot on Twitter and to anyone I happened to be talking

"I will not have a three-way cuddle with a struggling comedian!" I think it's fairly safe to say that those words could only have emanated from the twisted mind of author Jonathan Ames, creator of HBO's deliciously loopy private investigator comedy Bored to Death , which returns for a second season in September. But Bored to Death 's Jason Schwartzman, Ted Danson, and Zach Galifianakis aren't the only ones headed back to HBO this fall as the pay cabler also brings back Danny McBride's Kenny Powers to the lineup as Eastbound and Down returns for a second season in September. The teaser promos for the second seasons of Bored to Death and Eastbound and Down , as well as the image campaign for HBO's Summer/Fall 2010 series, can be found below. Bored to Death Season Two: Eastbound and Down Season Two: HBO Original Series Summer/Fall 2010 Image Campaign: Season Two of Bored to Death and Eastbound and Down return to HBO in September.