TVSquad

This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we'll supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com or call and leave a message at (775) 640-8479 - your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.

This week we have: Burn Notice, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, Kyle XY, Lost, My Boys, Nip/Tuck and Smallville. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)

Tricia Helfer will be in good hands once her run with Battlestar Galactica is over which, as we all know, is coming up very soon. As part of her recently announced talent deal with Fox, Helfer will be appearing on USA's Burn Notice when it returns to the air this July (Fox produces the show). She will be playing Michael's handler for an uknown number of episodes. Hey, the more episodes the better if you ask me.

I just love it when two shows I love come together and involve the same people that make each show great. No, I don't mean a cross-over; with the exception of spin-offs, I usually hate cross-overs. When I see a director or actor I love head over to another show I love (or, in the case of a new show, one that sounds up my alley), it's magic. It's like when you switch jobs and and old co-worker friend comes with you. Except the whole part about hating the first job you left. OK that was a horrible analogy.

Set your DVRs, friends, because USA and USA HD will begin re-airing the first season of what I consider one of last years most overlooked, good new shows, Burn Notice. In fact, the pilot episode starts airing tonight at 11:00 PM ET, but if you miss that you can catch it at 2:30 AM. Or Sunday at 10 AM. Or later, at midnight. Oh, and then there's the DVD set coming out in June. In other words, no excuses!

I just finished catching up with this show a couple of weeks ago with Deb, and I'm glad I did. Joel recently had a quick interview with Jeffrey Donovan of Burn Notice, who mentioned how, even if you have no idea what the show is about, every episode starts with a very brief "what this show is about" montage that should set anyone straight. Still, if you haven't checked the series out yet, give at least the first couple of episodes a shot.

[Thanks Gordon!]

What did I do during the writers' strike, you ask? I got caught up on the first season of Burn Notice, which I regrettably missed the first time around.

This show has got it all -- great characters, action-packed plots and layers of intrigue. Without simply saying that I love everything about Burn Notice, here is my list:

1. Jeffrey Donovan
The lead of Michael Westen could not be better cast. He is believable, but he layers on the quality of the performance with the best facial expressions on an actor's face that I can remember. I know when he is being a smart-ass, I know when he feels overwhelming love for his mom and I know when he knows he is in it deep.

Last night, USA Network invited some of their favorite advertisers -- and a few reporters -- to their upfront presentation, held at The Modern, a sleek restaurant and lounge located at New York's Museum of Modern Art. It was an opportunity for USA and NBC Universal executives to crow about the network's continued success as well as let advertisers know what's coming up in 2008 and how they can combine their advertising message with the unique "characters" that USA offers.

All that's well and good -- be ready for more product placement and ad pods that other networks have recently adopted -- but the best part about an upfront presentation are the stars that the network drags out to schmooze and booze with those advertisers. And USA brought the big guns, including Tony Shalhoub from Monk, Debra Messing from The Starter Wife, Jeffrey Donovan and Bruce Campbell from Burn Notice, Dulé Hill, James Roday, and Corbin Bernsen from Psych, Kathryn Erbe and Chris Noth from Law & Order: Criminal Intent, the WWE's Triple H and Shawn Michaels, and Mary McCormack from the network's new show In Plain Sight. I got to speak to a few of them; audio of those interviews is after the jump.

In addition to the recent renewals and new episode orders for TNT's Saving Grace and The Closer, the USA Network has ordered up thirteen new episodes of Burn Notice.

Burn Notice is great summer fare: a series that doesn't exactly break new ground but is still fun to watch. USA's motivation in picking new shows has been to focus on strong characters, and that's exactly what keeps Burn Notice from being just another crime/detective/mystery series (even though it is just another crime/detective/mystery series). It's also what keeps me tuning into Monk after all these years, even though every episode is pretty much the same. The lead players, Jeffrey Donovan, Sharon Gless, Bruce Campbell and Gabrielle Anwar, work well within the sometimes cookie-cutter self-contained plots, elevating the series to something worth checking out each week. It's not the plots so much, it's the people.

This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we'll supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com or call and leave a message at 917-421-9477 (NY) - your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.

This week we have: Burn Notice, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, House, How I Met Your Mother, Kyle XY, Lost, Nip/Tuck, One Tree Hill, Supernatural, The 4400, The L Word and Ugly Betty. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)

• At 8, CBS has a new Big Brother.
• FOX has a new Don't Forget The Lyrics at 8, then a new So You Think You Can Dance.
• TLC has a new American Hot Rod at 8, then new episodes of American Chopper and Hard Shine.
• Food Network has a new The Secret Life Of... at 8, featuring "Hollywood Eats."
• Also at 8: BBC America has a new Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.
• At 8:30, Bravo has a new Hey Paula.
• At 9, Food Network has the finale of The Next Food Network Star.
• Sci-Fi has the season premiere of Who Wants To Be A Superhero at 9, then the series premiere of Mind Control With Derren Brown.
• CNBC has the new special American Greed at 9.
• At 10, AMC has a new Mad Men.
• There's a new Burn Notice on USA at 10.
• Sundance Channel has a new Live From Abbey Road at 10, with LeeAnn Rimes and Dr. John.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Here are the weekly cable ratings, by number of viewers.

1. The Closer (TNT)
2. Nextel Cup Daytona (TNT)
3. Monday Night RAW - 10pm (USA)
4. Monday Night RAW - 9pm (USA)
5. The Bourne Supremecy (TNT)
6. Cory in the House (Disney)
7. Army Wives (Lifetime)
8. Burn Notice (USA)
9. Hannah Montana (Disney)
10. The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (Disney)

This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we'll supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com or call and leave a message at 917-421-9477 (NY) - your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.

This week we have: Brothers & Sisters, Burn Notice, CSI: New York, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, One Tree Hill, and Ugly Betty. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)

Four million people tuned into the series premiere of USA Network's Burn Notice two weeks ago, and they held on to most of those viewers last week.

The Thursday night show has become a hit for USA. Most shows get big numbers for their premieres, because of lots of advertising and curiosity (*cough* Studio 60 *cough*), but don't hold on to them. It looks like fans like viewers like Burn Notice enough to give it another shot.

• At 8, CBS has the season premiere of Big Brother, followed by a new Pirate Master.
• There's a "Backyard Party" on a new Emeril Live, at 8 on Food Network.
• TCM has two Randolph Scott westerns starting at 8: Seven Men From Now and Decision At Sundown.
• At 9, Al Gore guests on CNN's Larry King Live.
• At 10, USA has a new Burn Notice.
• Bravo has a new Hey Paula at 10.
• Also at 10: Sundance has a new Live From Abbey Road, with Shawn Colvin, Ray LaMontagne, The Zutons, and Nerina Pallot.
• At 10:30, BBC America has a new Hollyoaks.

Check your local TV listings for more.

(S01E01) The first thing that struck me about Burn Notice was how the show appealed to my senses. While watching the show, I could almost feel the heat of the sun, smell the salt water and taste the Pina Coladas.

I really appreciated the lack of explanation in the pilot. Most of us have already gotten the premise from the ads for the show, so once the action kicked in, right at the beginning, I was hooked. Generally, I don't like voice-overs but it was a great way to give details that make the show very interesting. I'm sure I'm not the only one who was getting MacGyver flashbacks when Michael was explaining how to make a listening device out of two cell phones.

• At 8, CBS has a new Pirate Master.
• FOX has a new Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader at 8, then a new So You Think You Can Dance.
• Tavis Smiley hosts a Presidential Candidates Forum with Democrats on PBS at 8.
• HBO has the first three episodes of John From Cincinnati, if you'd like to try to figure it out.
• At 9, Colin Powell guests on CNN's Larry King Live.
• USA has the series finale of Starter Wife at 9, followed by the premiere of Burn Notice.
• At 10, NBC has the series finale of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.
• Food Network has a new Throwdown with Bobby Flay at 10.
• Sundance has a new Live From Abbey Road at 10, with The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Snow Patrol, and Madeleine Peyroux.
• Also at 10: Bravo has the premiere of the reality show Hey, Paula.

Check your local TV listings for more.

When the new USA series Burn Notice debuts this Thursday at 10:00 p.m., it will air without commercials. The first episode will be presented in its entirety by DIRECTV, so while you won't be seeing any ads, expected to hear a few allusions to the digital satellite TV service during the first couple episodes.

Burn Notice stars Jeffrey Donovan as a CIA spook who is given his "burn notice," (meaning: he no longer works for the CIA) and uses his skills to help out people in need. The series also stars Bruce Campbell, Gabrielle Anwar and Sharon Gless.

After the premiere of Burn Notice, Donovan's character Michael Westen will appear to thank everyone for watching. In this segment, Westen will be seen de-activating a tracking bug he found in his apartment, and then tossing it into a frying pan.