TVSquad

(S04E13) The final shocking revelation of the season--which wasn't so shocking, if you heard the rumors--made me want to write off the Weeds season finale as unimaginative. To offer up such a commonplace TV twist, and to do it in the last moments of the episode, was definitely not original.

As season finales go, this episode wasn't legendary (I'll never regard that word the same way again, thanks to Doug). However, there were a few scenes that gave us the Weeds we've always loved, and I'd like to believe that the show's distinct, dark humor will have a stronger presence next season.

(S04E12) A lot can happen in two weeks! Weeds took a short break and returned in the form of an action-packed drama. If this episode set the tone for next week, we can expect the finale to be a departure from the flaky, in-over-her-head Nancy from seasons past. Things have gotten serious on our little drug comedy.

Fortunately, there were some lighter moments. Naked Andy always mellows things out, and Celia gave us some laughs as well. Naturally, her rehab breakthrough came from a selfish place, which led to some hilarious backhanded apologies. Will there be any time for humor in next week's season finale?

(S04E11) The truth hurt almost everyone this week. The stress of having both a deflowered son and knowledge of the tunnel's other uses took its toll on Nancy. Harsh reality set in for the others as well. Doug's faults weren't lost on Maria, Celia's lack of insurance affected her recovery, and Bob Odenkirk made me lose confidence in commercial airline pilots. Where's Jimmy Jam when you need him?

(S04E10) Season four of Weeds has been a season of breakthroughs. Ever since Nancy left Agrestic and started over, she's been re-examining her life and coming to terms with her personal failures. The big question is: Will she ever truly change her behavior?

Her self-awareness has yielded some positive results, like her dinner table apology and her throwdown with Lisa, but we've yet to see any significant changes. Will this week's discovery make a difference?

(S04E09) It appears that Nancy is growing up, and it only took four seasons for it to happen. She dealt with mature relationship issues and had a calm, romantic moment with Esteban. I was thrilled that she finally made good on her promise to be more available to her family, going MILF-a-MILF with Lisa and dealing with Shane's kinky flea-scratching. Her responsible behavior also made up for Celia's descent into coke-fiendom.

Would you like to see more nudity and profanity on network television?

It's no secret that the networks are losing ground to the cable channels when it comes to original scripted programming, especially dramas. Just take a look at the Emmy nominations for Best Drama this year and you see that three of the six nominated are from cable: Mad Men, Damages, and Dexter). And the three that are from the networks are shows that have been a while and are (arguably) on the back nine when it comes to their life: Boston Legal, Lost, and House. While the network shows obviously get more viewers than cable, cable (and online) is the place to go for more creative content and buzz.

Wired's Epicenter blog has a piece about how the more free world of cable television is hurting network TV.

Hey, let's all mark our calendars, because it's a big day in the TV world. Now all the people who aren't watching According to Jim on TV can not watch it on DVD.

Season one of the ABC comedy (it's a comedy, right?) will be released on Oct. 21, 2008. It's part of a deal ABC Studios inked with Lionsgate Home Entertainment to distribute select titles on DVD. Season one of Reaper is next on Nov. 4, followed by Boy Meets World (which was discontinued in 2006), Hope and Faith, and 8 Simple Rules.

That's interesting, because I've got Season one of 8 Simple Rules here (no, I didn't buy it, a publicist sent it to me), and it's from Buena Vista Home Entertainment. So Lionsgate must be taking over distribution.

(S04E08) This episode definitely belongs in the "mixed bag" category. Some things worked for me and others didn't. Nancy's extended lunch date with Esteban and Shane's prison-style lunch confrontation were both enjoyable. On the down side, Celia's drugged-out craziness and Silas' scenes with Lisa didn't entertain me.

I expected something more at this point in the season, but it looks like things are set up for a better episode next week. Don't give up, Weeds fans!

(S04E07) Nancy hasn't completely left her old self behind, has she? After only a short time at Maternity World, she was ready to take on her old operation. Many of the pre-Ren Mar folks emerged from various parts of California. I was strangely excited to see the Botwins' old housekeeper, Lupita, along with Sanjay (now a father to Clinique's baby) and Marvin (10 pounds lighter).

Have the good old days of pot dealing returned, or will Nancy have trouble working within someone else's organization?

(S04E06) Everyone was finding love--or lust--this week on Weeds. The presence of guest stars Julie Bowen and Demian Bichir just made the show significantly hotter. The Botwins and their tenants focused more on their personal lives, with mixed results. Celia developed her maternal side, Andy and Doug pondered their next move, and Silas got to know the neighbors.

When I posted the news items that came out of Showtime's portion of the CBS tour, the one question I got was "When will Dexter be back?" Well, network president Robert Greenblatt mentioned that the third season would debut in September. No word beyond that. Didn't seem like news to me. But there you are, Dexter fans; that's all I've got on that.

The executive session was introduced by a semi-funny clip from one of the network's stars, Tracey Ullman. Really, it wasn't that good, so I won't talk much about it here. Greenblatt also showed clips of The United States of Tara and Nurse Jackie during his opening remarks. Other than that? Well, isn't that enough?

Some quickie news from Showtime, presented by entertainment president Bob Greenblatt:

• Ilene Chaiken is developing a spin-off for The L Word, which will feature a yet unspecified character from the original show, whose upcoming season will be its last. There will be an open-ended plot in the season finale that Chaiken will continue online, then pick up if the spin-off comes to pass.
• Two more 13-episode seasons of Weeds have been ordered.
• A seventh season of Penn & Teller: Bullshit! has been ordered, making it Showtime's longest-running show.
• A reality/documentary show called Lock 'N Load has been ordered; it's filmed in a gun shop, and it shows the various people who purchase guns and "exploit their right to bear arms," according to the press release.
• Two new pilots have been ordered and filmed. The United States of Tara, produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Diablo Cody, stars Toni Collette as a suburban mother with multiple-personality disorder. John Corbett stars as her husband (yes... it's a comedy). The other pilot is tentatively-titled Nurse Jackie. It stars Edie Falco as a New York City nurse with a painkiller addiction who sometimes crosses moral lines to help her patients (no... it's not a comedy). Tara will begin airing in winter 2009, and Jackie will begin airing in late spring or early summer.
  

(S04E05) Weeds turned a corner with this episode. This week marked the true beginning of Nancy's new life. She owned up to her mistakes, made amends to her friends and family, and admitted the obvious: she was a lousy drug dealer. While it took Nancy several seasons to realize the truth about herself, Guillermo figured it out in a few episodes and gave her a new job.

(S04E04) Nobody mourns like the Botwins. I can't decide whose behavior was the least appropriate; there certainly were a lot of contenders. Lenny's countdown was extremely insensitive, and his actions throughout the episode didn't do him any favors, either. I'll save the specifics for after the jump, but he made Nancy's Andy-ditching look like an act of kindness. Not cool, BotWinBig, not cool.

Here come two more lists of the ten actors and actresses that are finalists for Emmy nominations in the supporting comedy categories. As with the other awards, there are some surprises on the list, and some notable omissions. For the ladies, the headline is that last year's winner, Jaime Pressly (My Name Is Earl), didn't make the cut. Surprise finalists include Conchata Ferrell (Two And A Half Men) and Amy Poehler (Saturday Night Live). I don't mind seeing Conchata on the list because she is consistently funny on the show, but I don't know that there is enough to her role for her to actually garner a nomination when you consider the competition.

On the other side of the coin, the defending champ, Jeremy Piven (Entourage), is back. None of the boys over at SNL managed to make the leap from Variety to Comedy that Poehler did.