[Televisionary]

Forget what your parents may have told you: Vice does have its rewards. In a bit of a surprise move (albeit one that makes this jaded writer ecstatic), ABC will not kill critical, er, darling Dirty Sexy Money and has instead handed out a full season order to the freshman drama . The back nine order for the series, created by Craig Wright, comes amid the ongoing writers' strike here in Hollywood and is the first order of its kind since the strike began nearly two weeks ago. (Apparently, my constant prayers that the series would be picked up were heard by Steve McPherson.) Dirty Sexy Money joins fellow Alphabet network rookies Private Practice, Pushing Daisies , and Samantha Who? in the pickup line. ABC's confidence in Dirty Sexy Money , while well-intentioned, is perceived as a bit odd as there is no guarantee that the series will even finish shooting its initial 13 episode order, given the strike situation. However, a spokesperson for the network said that ABC is confident th

I've gotten several emails from readers wondering why I'm not giving any Televisionary love to freshman drama Dirty Sexy Money on ABC. Good question. The fact is that Wednesday nights are so crowded with series, from Pushing Daisies to Top Model , that I occasionally end up turning in before I get a chance to watch Dirty Sexy Money that night. Really, that's the only reason why I haven't mentioned Dirty Sexy Money (other than in every Wednesday's What I'm Watching Tonight section), a snarky and fun series which I absolutely love. (Well, except for the way OTN title.) The past week's episode of Dirty Sexy Money ("The Bridge") reaffirmed my love for the series. It's been a bouncy ride, from the buoyancy of the original pilot script to the finished series, which has greatly improved on that disastrous and dour early cut of the pilot I saw way back when in early May, complete with a blackmail-laden lunchtime get-together between Nick and a &q

Several of new fall series launched last night, including dramas Bionic Woman , Dirty Sexy Money , and Private Practice . Now that you've seen the pilot episodes of all three series, what were your reactions to these new series? I'll admit that Dirty Sexy Money 's pilot was a full head and shoulders above the original network cut I saw in early May and lived up to the promise of the original script. As for my full feelings about the campy series, you'll have to wait until next week when I discuss the pilot episode and the series' third installment. But one note to producers: no more transsexual hooker storylines; it's been done to death already. As for Private Practice , I'm not a Grey's Anatomy fan, so this isn't normally my cup of medicine-laced tea. That said, I thought that Kate Walsh was as adorable as ever and Tim Daly very charismatic; still, I'm hoping that Addison and Taye Diggs' Sam Bennett hook up (not that I'll be watching).

ABC's new drama Dirty Sexy Money certainly doesn't have a shortage of morally ambiguous characters but the cast just got two additions that will stir up some major trouble when the series launches this fall. Blair Underwood has joined the cast of the ABCTV-produced series in a recurring role, where he'll play a super-wealthy nemesis to Donald Sutherland's rich-as-Midas pater familias Tripp Darling. He recently appeared on CBS' Old Christine , where he will continue his role when the midseason comedy returns in 2008. Meanwhile, also joining cast of Dirty Sexy Money is Tamara Feldman ( Boston Legal ), who will play the former best friend of the youngest Darling spawn, who returns to Manhattan and the Darlings' lives to cause a scandal that involves the family.