TVSquad

(S02E09) Things are certainly heating up on Big Love. I don't know for certain what big finale we are gearing up for. I used to think that it was Bill taking over as head of the U.E.B. (United Effort Brotherhood). I thought last season was leading Bill toward being the prophet. But now I'm not so sure. Now, more and more, I think things are careening toward Bill losing everything. I don't think he'll lose the store (though, that would make Margie's concerns foreshadowing), but I think he is going to lose Barb. And that, in Bill's world, would be everything.

(S02E05) The Wild Thyme Cafe & Bakery.

That's where this installment of Big Love started. With Bill Henrickson's right-hand man and confidant telling him not to keep his frustrations about his personal life all bottled up inside.

Then, as if on cue, a waitress named Ana, in a frilly pink and black uniform descended upon Bill's table and offered a sympathetic ear to listen to his troubles. And she also offered him a sweet piece of pie.

Maybe it was the pie. Maybe it was her uniform. Or her accent. Or maybe, perhaps, Bill was just feeling a bit randy and wanted a distraction. But it was clear that, despite all of the current troubles with which the Henrickson family is coping with its three wives, Bill is in the market for a fourth wife.

(S02E4) Imagine a giant, sticky spider web. No matter where you get stuck -- whether it's over in the upper-left-hand corner, or along the edges on the right -- you're still essentially, trapped in that same large web.

The many disparate storylines that flowed through the fresh episode of Big Love reminded me, for some reason, of a spider web, with the Henrickson family playing the role of the web. No matter what was happening, it all led back to the Henricksons and their three homes sitting in a tidy row.

Thinking of everything sticking to the Henricksons in one way or another helped me get through this very busy episode which was chock-full of stories that went all over the place.

I loved the creepy, thought provoking and exquisitely acted freshman season of HBO's Big Love and am eager to find out what the writers have come up with for the Henrickson family, now that their polygamist lifestyle has been publicly exposed.

Well, fans won't have to wait much longer to find out how Barb handles the humiliation of being disqualified from the state Mother of the Year contest because her husband Bill is also married to two other women, or whether Bill's string of home improvement stores will suffer from the news.

NBC brings us the Golden Globes tonight, and this is the last in our series of preview posts looking at the television categories. Sandy will be blogging live updates of the show here on TV Squad, so if Jack and 24 already have your attention, keep a browser open to play along. That said, let's look at the award for Best Television Series - Drama.

Inertia is a powerful thing. And it is one of the big problems with Emmy nominations. Too often the same show will get nominated year after year because that's just what they do, while newer, more deserving shows, are overlooked. The Golden Globes doesn't fall into that particular trap quite as often, but they have their own issues. The Globes have a tendency to favor shows with a lot of buzz, or big ratings, whether their quality is up to snuff or not. I think it's something we see again in the list of nominees this year.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, HBO likes Big Love enough to bring it back for a second season. The series is about a polygamist family consisting of a husband, three wives, and seven children (and at least one wife wants another child).

The viewership for Big Love hasn't been impressive, with about 50% of Sopranos' viewers not sticking around for the show. It has been averaging about 4 million viewers each Sunday night. Those numbers are comparable to HBO's Deadwood.

Season two of Big Love begins filming in August.

Are you kidding me? Cingular is charging customers $1.99 for Big Love wallpaper for cell phones. You know what I'm talking about, right? Teeny, tiny, little cell phone wallpaper pictures. For $1.99. For Big Love? It's a brand new show, on late at night, on premium cable. If HBO wants to promote Big Love, it should be giving away those wallpaper photos for free. Puh-lease.

Cingular also has Muppets wallpaper. Ok, I might consider paying for that one. If I didn't already know how to make my own.

All sorts of television shows are new or returning this week. Some highlights include, of course, The Sopranos and the controversial Big Love tonight on HBO. Personally, I'm looking forward to the new Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy, The New Adventures of Old Christine. I'm hoping she can break the Seinfeld curse this time around. The promos aren't all that promising but I like Louis-Dreyfus enough to give it a shot on Monday.

Here's what's up:

• The Sopranos, Sundays @ 9 pm on HBO (Sixth season premieres March 12)
• They're back.
  

• Big Love, Sundays @ 10 pm on HBO (premieres March 12)
• Bill Paxton stars as a polygamist in Salt Lake City who has three wives, seven children and three adjoining houses. Also stars Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin. Great tagline: Polygamy Loves Company.

I can't say I'm surprised about this news. HBO is launching a new original series after The Sopranos on March 12 called Big Love. It stars Bill Paxton as a wealthy businessman from Salt Lake City who just happens to be a polygamist. He tries to balance the needs of his three wives, played by Chloe Sevigny, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Ginnifer Goodwin (hey, that's some good casting!), by popping a little Viagra every now and then. HBO expects the funny to erupt as Paxton tries to juggle his three families, while keeping his lifestyle secret.