The adaptation of the Doctor Who novel Human Nature concludes this evening with The Family of Blood. This two-parter is just an amazing piece of work in my mind, and really gives Tennant a chance to play his John Smith character, who really doesn’t want to go back to being the Doctor. ‘Why can’t I be John Smith? Isn’t he a good man? I want to stay!’

Tennant makes you believe in this altered version of the Doctor, and you feel for the plight that the character is in. Here, he is no longer lonely, he’s in love, and wants to stay just as he is.

But these things aren’t to be of course, as the Family of Blood, track him down, and using their animated scarecrows lead an assault on the boy’s school that he teaches at.

My favorite parts of the episode had to be the glimpse of an alternate life the Doctor could have lived, and the epilogue where we see justice measured out to those who deserve it, and the effects of the Great War.

Cons watch this week features the traditional whites.

Next week is my favorite episode of the entire third series, Blink! What an ep!

Doctor Who airs Monday nights on CBC.

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

A website has popped up promoting a highly anticipated new film – Medellin, directed by Billy Walsh, and starring Vincent Chase as drug lord Pablo Escobar. The site, Medellinthefilm.com, includes a trailer, a synopsis of the film, and photos from the set.

There’s also an interview with Vincent Chase about the making of Medellin. Here’s a snippet of what he had to say:

This is a movie I wanted to make for years and it became evident that the only way to make it happen was to do it myself. In my career I always go after the things I want, even though my agent thinks I’m crazy, my lawyers think I’m crazy, my manager thinks I’m crazy, and most of my family thinks I’m crazy. But, you only live once and have to do things that you believe in. I feel we have a movie here that is special.

Now this is a very well put together website promoting a movie I’d be lining up to see on opening day, except for one fact – the movie doesn’t exist beyond the realm of HBO’s hit show Entourage! The show has always blurred the line between reality and fiction. Anyone else remember the ad in Variety magazine congratulating Vincent Chase on the success of Aquaman? HBO has really gone the distance with this one, creating a sleek looking site to promote Vince’s next big hit, and potential winner at the Cannes Film Fest. I know there is talk about a real life Aquaman movie, especially due to renewed interest after the Entourage storyline, so a biopic on Pablo Escobar could very well become a reality. If Hollywood decided to make Medellin, who do you think should play Pablo Escobar? A yet to be determined actor, or should they have Adrian Grenier portray Escobar, but be credited as Vincent Chase? My vote’s for Grenier/Chase.

This post was Authored by Melissa, Our Resident Authority on all things Entourage

I think there are quite a few people out there who may be looking for a little bit of a reminder of what went down at the end of last season on Prison Break.

There’s a banner up over at the Prison Break page on FOX’s website announcing replay dates for the final 6 episodes of the season on the dates listed below. The episodes will run in 2-hour blocks starting at 8 ET.

August 27th “Bad Blood” and “Wash”

September 3rd “Sweet Caroline” and “Panama”

September 10th “Fin del Camino” and “Sona”

Honestly, I think this is a great move by FOX. I never managed to get a second run through on Season 2 because most episodes were sacrificed on my Tivo to make some room. There was simply so much that went on, it’ll be good to have a little clarification going into Season 3.

And don’t forget, Season 3 of Prison Break returns on September 17th at 8/7c !

This post was Authored by Matt Archibald, Our Resident Authority on all things Prison Break

It looks like Comic-Con made solid a few rumours swirling around about the recasting of the love interest in Reaper.

TV.com says:

Hot off her recurring role on NBC’s Heroes, Missy Peregrym has landed the female lead on the CW’s upcoming one-hour series Reaper… Peregrym will play the slacker’s pretty coworker on whom he has a crush. She replaces Nikki Reed (Thirteen), who played the role in the pilot.

Not only was the actual re-casting done fairly quickly and quietly, the reasoning for it was actually fairly difficult to find. Kevin Smith (director of the Pilot), while at Comic-Con, said simply, “She sucked,” according to the Teamsugar.com blog. He amended his comments later, saying “she just wasn’t right for the part.”

Now, I’ve seen the Nikki Reed pilot, and haven’t yet seen Peregrym in the role. I didn’t mind Reed so much, nothing glaring jumped out that she was a bad choice in my opinion. I’m interested to see how different Peregrym does the role. I’m also interested to see how this affects Peregrym other high-profile role - that of Candace on NBC’s Heroes. Seeing how Heroes is filmed in Southern California and Reaper is filmed in Vancouver, BC… I doubt she can pull off both shows.

So what think? Has anyone seen the Peregrym version of the Pilot? Am I missing the boat on thinking Reed was fine in the Pilot? I’ll re watch it again to get a second taste, but let’s hear what you guys think…

“Reaper” premieres on Tuesday, September 25 on The CW Network.

This post was Authored by John Gonzalez, Our Resident Authority on all things Reaper

The boys move into new digs, a potential new client runs into Eric, Turtle’s favourite elixir is facing extinction, and Ari’s jealousy rears its ugly head.

Here’s the lowdown from HBO.com

Vince’s ‘Lost in the Clouds’ cash has landed the crew in new digs … while E struggles to locate the place, actress Anna Faris rear-ends his Aston-Martin. Turtle suffers a disappointment, announcing that his favorite strain of marijuana has gone extinct. At the Gold house, Ari’s spotlighting a few flaws doesn’t go over so well.

As Eric continues to emerge from Vince’s shadow, Turtle is content with his place in the shade. What Eric thinks may be an opportunity for romance turns out to be a potential new business venture. Was it just me, or did Vince show a hint of jealousy when Eric told him that he may have a new client? I think there will continue to be a strain on the Eric/Vince friendship as Eric begins to assert his independence. I’m not sure if Vince is hiding behind his conceit to disguise his bruised ego, or if he really is threatened by the prospect of Eric representing others.

Jealousy seemed to be the order of the day, as Mrs. Ari is asked to reprise a role from her youth on a famous soap opera, and Ari will stop at nothing to try and prevent his woman from a lip-lock with a younger man. He resorts to insults and sleazy negotiation tactics. Can you blame the guy for not wanting to share his wife and mother of his children with a lusty Latin lad?

As Season 4 nears its end, it’s really starting to shape up as the season of Ari and Eric, and their evolution. It’s also the season of little mysteries nagging at my mind – not only do we not know Turtle’s real name, Mrs. Ari’s name seems to be veiled in secrecy as well!

This post was Authored by Melissa, Our Resident Authority on all things Entourage

Eric emerges from Vince’s shadow, Drama takes one for the team, and Ari contends with rivaling twin agents at the office. Oh, and we get another appearance by the always bizarre Gary Busey.

Here’s a recap of this week’s episode from HBO.com

Now that E’s leapt off of Vince’s mountain-climbing movie because of Walsh, he decides to jumpstart his management company with some office space … meanwhile Ari has his own business issues to juggle.

Eric is really starting to come into his own as a character, and as a manager. He may not know exactly how the Hollywood game works, but he’s got a good head, good instincts, and maybe bit of the ol’ luck of the Irish to continuously produce results. I think that he’s starting to realize that he may not always be able to depend on Vinnie’s acting career, so he’s broadening his horizons by setting up shop and securing his name in the business.

Now that Ari has shown heart, with his family, and with his assistant, he’s back to cracking skulls at the office. When twin agents Jeff and Jim go to war at MGA, Ari’s forced into the role of mediator. When it comes down to choosing the better man or the moneymaker, Ari hesitantly goes with the money, but I think he was torn. Ari had said earlier in the season that he’s not fond of people who cheat on their partners.

In pursuit of the perfect desk for Eric’s new office, Vince, Turtle and Drama end up at Gary Busey’s house. Now I often wonder whenever I see Busey in anything these days if he’s actually acting, or just being himself. Everything, and at times everyone, can be bought in Hollywood; Busey states his price for the desk, and it leaves Drama a little blue – literally.

When it comes right down to it, I think Eric has the potential to be a great manager, but I have this sinking suspicion that his loyalty to Vince might get in the way. Will he ever truly emerge from Vince’s shadow, despite all of his efforts? Perhaps we’ll see in the final 4 episodes of this season.

This post was Authored by Melissa, Our Resident Authority on all things Entourage

I remember when a new sci-fi show was set to air in the fall and the most you could hope to see in advance was an article in USA Today or Starlog with a few static press photos and an interview with the producer.

Today, you can just take a quick trip (or a slow-motion sprint to the tune of your own ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-cha) over to This YouTube clip to find a peek at NBC’s Bionic Woman.

I remember when a new sci-fi show was set to air in the fall and the most you could hope to see in advance was an article in USA Today or Starlog with a few static press photos and an interview with the producer. Today, you can just take a quick trip (or a slow-motion sprint to the tune of your own ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-cha) over to this YouTube clip to find a peek at NBC’s Bionic Woman.

I’m guessing this five minute clip was cut together from the original pilot, maybe to sell the show to a roomful of suits and sponsors, since it lacks a certain polish. There’s some awfully generic sound effects in a fight scene near the end and the whole clip features music so typical of modern movie trailers that it will provoke involuntary eye-rolls from all but the most impressionable 11 year olds. Of course, there’s plenty of decent visuals and interesting story elements on display that I found plenty to smile at.

We’ll know for sure when it premieres next month, but this newBionic Woman looks to be something of a cross between the Hulk (the Bill Bixby show, not the Ang Z-z-z-z-z movie) and the original RoboCop. The echoes of the latter are all over the clip — partly due to the fact that Miguel Ferrer (the celluloid father of the ‘borg in blue) appears to have a supporting role in Bionic Woman, but also because actress portraying the titular femme, Michelle Ryan, has something of that emotional coldness that Peter Weller had in that Verhoeven classic. Must be the cold blue eyes the two share. At any rate, it works, and helps add to the perceived tone, which at least in this clip feels very much like a B-movie.

I like B-movies. There’s a great seat-of-the-pants momentum to flicks like RoboCop, Tremors, and Evil Dead, where the writers and directors seem to be shooting the story straight from the hip, not thinking and certainly not caring what a critic might write in a review one day. I can respect that kind of blind, giddy, outrageous enthusiasm. And from the looks of it, Bionic Woman might have a good deal of that same enthusiasm, although I worry that come September 26th, it’ll prove a little short on giddy.

As much as I love the new Battlestar Galactica, I don’t want to see that same deadly serious tone transposed onto a show about, let’s face it, a woman who has the bionic gams that her haul off and kick some serious ass from time to time. So I can’t help but worry, at least a little, that some of the family baggage seen in that YouTube clip feels a wee bit like “a very special episode of Growing Pains.”

Soif you haven’t already,watch the clip. And see if you think Bionic Woman has been eating all its sci-fi B-movie cheese…or if it’s been gorging itself on a steady diet of tee-vee melodrama, the kind that builds tragic, angst-riddled twenty-somethings.

This post was authored by Jim Titus, a man worth significantly less than Six Million.

One of the funniest, and probably THE most awkward, moment in the history of The Office was during the “Gay Witch Hunt” episode last season. In the episode, Michael (Steve Carell), upset that he has alienated the freshly outed Oscar (Oscar Nunez), decides to prove to the staff how open minded and accepting he is by kissing Oscar on the mouth.

In an interview on IGN.com

According to Nunez, the kiss was totally unscripted. Neither he, nor anyone else in the scene, knew Carell was going to go that far. Luckily, only one take was necessary…despite the surprise kiss, none of the actors in the scene lost their composure. For more on “Gay Witch Hunt” and a few tidbits on the upcoming season, check out the interview.

Could you have kept it together if something like that happened unexpectantly?

This post was Authored by Joe Purcell, Our Resident Authority on all things The Office

Nods to my good friend, Yael, who tipped me off to this audio interview of The Office producer Greg Daniels and writer/actor Mindy Kaling (Kelly), on NPR (where I would have NEVER found it)

It’s a bit dated but definitely worth a listen.

Kaling, whose “Kelly” character is a total ditz, comes off bright and witty. She offers some insight to her inspiration for writing the “Diwali” episode…including the “Monkey Brains” scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Also interesting was that in “Diwali” her actual parents played her parents in the episode.

Daniels offers some insight on why he believes The Office is so successful. He says that most show feature the “romantic leads” and the main characters and use “the wacky boss” in a supporting role. For The Office, they did just the opposite…and the results speak for themselves. He also tells how he had to make a lot of “business concessions” to convince NBC to pick the show for a second season after poor ratings in season one.

Give a listen..and let me know what you think.
This post was Authored by Joe Purcell, Our Resident Authority on all things The Office

After another pile of applicants have submitted their desire to write for us, we have chosen what I hope will be an impressive pile of contributors, all excited and eager to get writing.

But it’s not over yet. There are still some seats to fill and some shows that we want to have coverage on for this coming season. Some shows were deliberately left out because they are not in season or are of limited run with limited demographic (reality shows, miniseries etc). If we feel the need to cover these shows is significant enough, we will put out a call for those shows as well.

So on to the “Short List”

Anchorwoman* - Fox
K-Ville* - Fox
Nashville* - Fox
New Amersterdam* - Fox
Chuck* - NBC
JourneyMan* - NBC
Life - NBC
Scrubs - NBC
Las Vegas - NBC
NCIS - CBS
Ghost Whisperer* - CBS
Moonlight* - CBS
Criminal Minds - CBS
The Unit - CBS
Numb3rs - CBS
Cane* - CBS
Boston Legal - ABC
Men in Trees - ABC
Desperate Housewives - ABC
Brothers & Sisters - ABC
Samantha Who?* - ABC
Pushing Daisies* - ABC
Dirty Sexy Money* - ABC
Big Shots* - ABC
Women’s Murder Club* - ABC
Cashmere Mafia* - ABC
Gossip Girl* - CW
Supernatural - CW
My Boys - TBS
Jericho - Space
Eureka - Space

* indicates new shows.

New shows may only stick around for a short while until the networks decide if they are keeping them.

There are a lot of midseason shows that are not being considered right now. We are trying to focus on just what is on TV this coming fall.

So if you think you want to write for us, email Rodney. You will get a reply, and everyone will be considered.

Remember, this is the short list of shows we haven’t found a suitable writer for (or have yet to hear a reply from those who first expressed interest). Lots of shows are assigned already, these are just the ones that are not yet that we hope to cover for sure. If you see a show that is not on this list that you think should be, add it in the comments section.

The fall season is coming up fast (damn these short summers) and I want to have a LOT of shows represented.

I look forward to hearing from you all very soon.

This post was Authored by Rodney Brazeau, Copy Editor

The Emmy awards are just around the corner, and Grey’s Anatomy received three nominations for its supporting female cast members: Katherine Heigl, Sandra Oh, and Chandra Wilson.

Variety explains each of the women’s chances as well as the other nominees

The ladies of “Grey’s Anatomy” dominate the supporting actress in a drama category, and it’d be far from a stretch to say at least two of those women — Katherine Heigl and Sandra Oh — rose to high dramatics last season.

Heigl’s Izzy Stevens began the year dealing with the death of husband-to-be Denny Duquette by baking muffins and ended it by having an affair with married man and best friend George O’Malley.

Oh endured a tumultuous seasonlong relationship and was left standing at the alter as Isiah Washington’s Dr. Burke said goodbye to her, seeing her trepidation at spending a life together.

Also on “Grey’s,” but in a much more subdued — though by no means less well-executed — role, was nominee Chandra Wilson, whose classy Dr. Bailey, try as she might, aims to lessen the hysteria that always seems to permeate the halls of Seattle Grace.

Personally, I think out of the Grey’s ladies Wilson and Oh have the greatest chance of winning an Emmy. Many people do not care as much for Heigl’s character and sometimes she is portrayed as spastic and many of her dramatic scenes feel contrived as well. But the Grey’s ladies have some stiff competition from other supporting actresses: Sopranos’ stars Lorraine Bracco and Aida Turturro and Rachel Griffiths from Brothers and Sisters.

The Sopranos seems to be the Emmy’s darling this year with the most nominations. That doesn’t mean that it would translate to wins, but since it had its last season, it feels like it would be awarded a lot of Emmys. Griffiths has a good track record and never won an Emmy for her amazing performance as Brenda on Six Feet Under. She could be winning here to make amends.

Who do you think will win a Supporting Actress Emmy?

This post was Authored by Angela Riley, Our Resident Authority on all things Grey’s Anatomy

A press release today, August 15, from the BBC press office gives us our first look at the cast ensemble for Torchwood Series 2, with Captain Jack, and Martha Jones surrounded by the rest of the team.

Russell T Davis says, “Freema is a wonderful actress and we want to give her the chance to add another dimension to Martha. She is going to cause some waves in the team – especially as she joins Torchwood at a point when everything is going to change for one of them.”

I think that’s great that Freema is going to be kept busy with Torchwood before returning to finish out Series 4 of the Doctor. Her character of Martha is completely different from Piper’s Rose and I’m looking forward to seeing how her character grows and changes in the darker and grittier world of Torchwood before she returns to the Doctor’s side.

By why is it so far away!?!?! I’m ready for new Doctor Who and Torchwood NOW!!!!

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

It seems Billie Piper, you played Rose to the 9th and 10th Doctors, is missing her time-traveling days and has hinted she wouldn’t be opposed to returning, especially for David Tennant’s final episode as The Doctor (please sign a new contract and keep going David, PLEASE!). The Metro.co.uk posted a quick blurb about Piper’s thoughts.

I personally loved the tag…”It would be great to get both Billie and Kylie back in the same show. Ratings would go through the roof for that and I’m sure the Doctor wouldn’t know whether he was coming or going.

I would love to see Rose come back, they’ve already hinted that Mickey may return, but I’d like to see Rose return. Sure her story had proper closure at the end of Series 2, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to visit with her, and hear about Pete and Jackie’s new baby, and the like.

What do you guys think?

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

At TVGuide.com Michael Ausiello has some casting news for the new season of Nip/Tuck which premieres 30 November on F/X.

Portia de Rossi will be joining the cast for nine episodes playing a lesbian mom whose teen daughter wants to go under the knife [and] John Schneider has been cast as the head of a major adult-video empire who previously worked with ex-porn princess Kimber.

The TVGuide.com article does contain spoilers.

Portia de Rossi is in for almost half the season, and has a major storyline involving another regular cast member. Her addition to the cast is an interesting one. Most of Portia’s roles have been comedic, and is most well known for Arrested Development and Ally McBeal. She is a strong actor and has the right look for the show, but does she fit?

John Schneider currently is only cast in a single episode. I’m just glad to see John getting some work. He is a highly underrated actor whose presence on Smallville has been greatly missed. I hope that his arch gets extended.

This season is already shaken up with the move from Miami to Los Angeles, which will undoubtedly change the shows undertones some, but I am still looking forward anticipating the new season. What do you think about the cast? How about the move to LA?

This post was Authored by Larry Latouf, Guest Author

Each week, Margene ( or most likely an assistant producer acting as Margene ) blogsabout her life in the Big Love universe. If you want to stay 100% spoiler free, then I suggest you don’t read it as she sometimes hints at upcoming storylines. This week, she answers questions posed by her regular readers. One in particular that caught my eye was the following:A lot of people ask things about Nicki and one person even said they even wished Nicki had a blog. Well, keep dreaming. That ain’t gonna happen. But, I wish she would too because then she could answer some of your questions about her. She was married once before, but I don’t know ANY of the details about it because she’s as tight lipped about that as anybody I’ve ever seen.

Nicki was married once before? Did I miss something, or is this the first time we’ve heard of this? Sometimes these online blogs don’t have any bearing on the actual show, but Margene’s blog always seems to be relevant. If this is a new nugget of the Big Love tale, I would really like to see it explored more on the show. Nicki has become somewhat one-dimensional this season and a storyline about her previous marriage would be interesting.

What is your take?

This post was Authored by Larry Latouf, Our Resident Authority on all things Big Love

This weeks Big Love touched on all this seasons hot topics. HBO.com synopsis gives:

This week, rebuffed by Barb, Bill asks Margene to accompany him to a Bar Owner’s trade convention. Alby realizes that Juniper Creek has been robbed, and thinks he knows by whom.

Each week I get more and more excited about this terrific show. All three wives were very much in the forefront for the entire episode.

Usually I have a favourite, but this week Barb, Nicki & Margene were excellent.

(Potential Spoilers)
I really believe that they are gearing up for Barb to leave (or threaten to leave) the family, and take Sarah and Teeny with her.
Barb is ashamed of her lifestyle, which was emphasized when Bill ‘came out’ at the bar convention. For Barb, I believe that the impact that polygamy has on her kids is really what is pushing her away. If Sarah opens up to Barb after her discussion with the social worker this week, I think that would push her over the edge.

I’ve tried to stay spoiler free for the most part, so I could be way off. What do you think? Will Barb leave the family this season? It would be an interesting season finale, and we could start next season with Nicki acting as first wife.

This post was Authored by Larry Latouf, Our Resident Authority on all things Big Love

Hey All, it looks like some of my Christmas wishes may be coming true.

Perhaps one of THE best Doctor Who sites on the web, DrWho Online , have just opened their online store, and have packed it to the brim with all kinds of Doctor Who goodness. For those interested in chasing down DVDs this looks to be the place to do it, just make sure you have a multi-region player before you make any purchases if you live outside the UK as it looks like they’re only carrying the UK versions at the moment.

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

I would occassionally get an email asking me “Why are you not covering John from Cincinnati?” and frankly that was the first time I had ever heard of the show. And I run a site about TV Shows. Then I thought I would look into this show and I get the news that a whole day after its finale had aired, HBO gave it the axe!

CNN reports:

For the few devoted fans of the show, which David Milch (”Deadwood”) created with “surf noir” author Kem Nunn, the mysterious final line in the season finale — John saying, “Mother of God, Cass-Kai” over a shot of Kai (Keala Kennelly) surfing — will remain just that, a mystery

The show is not even given a chance to tie up its loose ends. An abrupt unforgiving end like that usually spells out bad news for the series.

Some people I know said it was good, but I guess they were in the minority.

Did any of you watch this?

This post was Authored by Rodney Brazeau, Copy Editor

IGN posted an article giving away details on the plot. As expected, the plot seems much like something you’d see as an episode for the show. Of course, this is just a big dvd-direct episode of the show.

IGN says:

As Xmas 3007 approaches, the Futurama crew must fight to save Earth in an epic battle against nudist alien Internet scammers. When the evil naked aliens launch a cyber-attack on Planet Express, they make a shocking discovery: the secret of time travel, mysteriously tattooed on Fry’s buttocks. Using their devious nudist software to control Bender, they repeatedly send the beer-fueled robot back in time to loot Earth of its greatest treasures. Bender’s rampage through history has shocking repercussions when he encounters Al Gore (guest-starring as himself) during the 2000 Presidential recount. Meanwhile, Leela finds true love, a beloved crew member suffers an embarrassing decapitation, and Fry learns deep secrets about his destiny and his buttocks

Ahhhhh…sounds like we have another Casablanca on our hands!

But all kidding aside, I loved Futurama, and while I may be the only one, I shake my fist at Fox’s televised Sunday sports shows..and Fox themselves, of course, by making the show walk the plank by giving it the 7pm timeslot. You know, the one that Football trampled over every single time it ran long. Of course, it didn’t help having the Post Game show that always told sports fans every thing they already knew by watching the game. Ok, I’m rambling. Sorry guys, I just feel like the show was cut off way too soon, and I still think it’s amazing that it lasted as long as it did.

This post was Authored by Josh Kelhoffer, Our Resident Authority on all things Adult Swim

I confess I don’t know much about the original Bionic Woman show. I’m pretty sure it was a spinoff of The Six Million Dollar Man (which I remember more for Lee Major’s gun-toting, ass-kicking cameo in Scrooged than for anything else). Like that 70’s slice of candy corn-fed Americana, no doubt his female counterpart likewise got all jacked up in some horrific accident only to be saved by some high-priced science. And she probably had lots of slow motion running/jumping/throwing scenes with echoing sound effects. Slow motion running/jumping/throwing was really big in 70’s television.

Anyway, not knowing much about things Bionic, why am I interested in this new show, and why should you give it a try? Is it because Battlestar Galactica’s David Eick is one of the executive producers and maybe he and his cohorts have found a way to take another 70’s staple and likewise turn it on its head? Could it be all those web ads I’ve been seeing depicting a woman’s eye wearing Geordi’s contacts from Star Trek: Nemesis have done their job and marketed their way into the geeky chambers of my fanboy heart? Or do you, like me, have your Tuesdays at 9 more or less free?

Yeah, all that helps. But mostly it’s enough for me that this new Bionic looks to be a sci-fi show with a decent budget and a cast that thankfully doesn’t appear to have been picked at random from the bleach-haired, doe-eyed crowds of MTV’s TRL.

It’s a warm and welcoming thought that there’s fresh sci-fi in the running that doesn’t feel the need to emulate the classic Trek format or, worse, sell itself short of its own premise (like, you know, not mentioning any names here, but a time travel show with such a miniscule budget that every episode is set in the 50’s and 60’s so they can make use of existing back lot sets and poodle skirts).

Between Battlestar Galactica, Lost, Doctor Who, Heroes, and the upcoming return of Futurama, there is once more heaping spoonfuls of warm, gooey sci-fi goodness flooding our airwaves and creeping into a TV lineup that has — aside from an inexplicable, insatiable desire for reality shows and celebrity worship — decided to embrace a much more engaging serial format.

In the old days of sci-fi, shows like Buck Rogers and Lost In Space, no matter how interesting the premise, pretty much choked themselves with a mandate that everything must remain exactly by show’s end as it was at its beginning, so as not to alienate any new viewers. Nowadays, the serial format has done away with all that, and has allowed characters and situations to grow and change, giving the show’s producers a format where the story can fell like it has an endpoint it’s working toward. So I’m willing to take the leap and give Bionic Woman a try and hopefully stick with it through that endpoint.

Anyone else up for it? Hey, if it stinks, then we can always come back here and give it the thorough bionic douching it deserves, right?

This post was Authored by Jim Titus, Guest Contributor