TVSquad

(S02E11) Many weeks ago (man, it's been a while since we've had a new episode) I shared my dream of a Dixie Carter-Vanessa Williams showdown. This week, Amanda visited a psychic played by another Designing Women cast member, the wonderful Annie Potts. So close! It's great to have Ugly Betty back, at least for now. The sad truth--that there are only two episodes left--is beginning to sink in. Who's panicking?

Jaime Ray Newman has been cast as the lead in the new CW drama pilot I Am Paige Armstrong. Newman plays a congressional aide who decides to run against her crooked boss.

The comedic drama Babylon Fields, about a town where the dead have come back to life, recently added Kathy Baker to the cast. Baker will play a housewife who must contend with her zombie husband, whom she killed with an ax.

Kevin Dunn has been added to the ABC comedy pilot Sam I Am, about a woman (Christina Applegate) suffering from amnesia who must piece her life back together.

(S01E17) After feeling like we've been treading water over the last few episodes, this one really felt like the show started moving forward again. Jack and Lynn are getting married, Mai and Sylvia are planning a wedding, Sarah is moving on with her career, Annie and Patrick are meeting her parents, and Marin is having boy troubles of a different kind. I have to admit that I was getting a little tired of this show after last week but this episode was invigorating.

Lots of casting news today in The Hollywood Reporter. Dylan McDermott has joined the cast of the ABC drama, A House Divided. It's about a rift between a midwestern farming community and the federal government. I wish I knew more because, wow, that sounds like a snoozer. Sarah Clarke (aka 'Nina' on 24) is also part of the cast. She plays the wife of the lead character, which might just be McDermott.

Wendie Malick, of Just Shoot Me and Jake in Progress, has been cast in the ABC comedy pilot, A Day in the Life. The show is about a young couple's wedding day, from different points of view (I imagine it'll have to advance past the wedding day). Malick plays the mother of the bride.

Other casting news: