TVSquad

The writers' strike forced some of my favorite shows into an unexpected, summer-long hiatus and delayed the return of others. I'm grateful that shows like Lost still have new episodes, but the second half of this TV season hasn't felt the same. I especially miss the promising new series that were cut short.

It feels like other shows have been on hiatus forever. Flight of the Conchords was supposed to return this year, but had its premiere pushed back until 2009. I miss Bret, Jemaine, and their strange circle of friends. I've been wondering about the fates of several absent characters lately. So many storylines were left unresolved.

Here's a short list of some of the faces I can't wait to see again:

AOL Television has compiled a list of the 50 Best TV Comedies -- Ever, this week revealing numbers 50-41. Inspired by what they did, I've decided to list my favorite sitcom sidekicks, those funny foils that oftentimes make the star shine even brighter than you might have thought. Coming up with just a ten-pack hasn't been so easy. Many times, I'd look at a show and think, "No, it's more of an ensemble. There isn't one sidekick." Falling into that category were B.J. and Trapper John on M*A*S*H. Neither were Hawkeye's sidekick, really (any more than Radar was). Same thing with Friends -- they were all each other's sidekicks. Also, on The Odd Couple, Oscar and Felix were equal; neither was a sidekick. Ditto Two and a Half Men and Laverne & Shirley. Also, because it's my list, I decided not to include married couples -- sorry Rob and Laura, Ricky and Lucy, Archie and Edith.

Whew, after all that, here, in alphabetical order, are the ten I love -- within my own parameters! Feel free to comment with your choices, if your favorite isn't on my list.

Whenever I think of Robert Wuhl, I'm reminded of that scene in Bull Durham where he's playing a coach meeting on the mound with the pitcher and the catcher -- Tim Robbins and Kevin Costner -- and they're arguing about what's an appropriate wedding gift. It's an inane, silly, funny moment, topped by Wuhl's suggestion that candlesticks always make a nice gift.

It's also nice to report that Robert Wuhl has agreed to remain with HBO. It's been his comic home for 12 years, including Arli$$ which ran for season seasons and poked fun at the world of professional sports. The show wasn't a water-cooler comedy like Entourage or Curb Your Enthusiasm, but it was consistently funny and I enjoyed it.

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today, on TV Squad Daily:

• Paris Hilton unintentionally brought clean water to thousands of people in need, and will help educate hundreds of blind children. It's the best outcome of a DUI and sex tape ever!!!
  
• Interesting: no one's using the news to fill gaps left by the strike.
  
• An answer to a viewer question about how the strike affects ad-libbed shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The video's embedded below, or you can subscribe to this podcast via our feed. Plus, you can also download the file directly.

• At 7, NBC has a new Football Night In America, then the Eagles/Giants game.
• The CW has a new CW Now at 7, followed by a new Online Nation.
• At 7:30 (or after football), CBS has a new 60 Minutes, then new episodes of Cold Case and Shark.
• At 8, PBS has a new installment of The War.
• ABC has a new Extreme Makeover at 8, then the season premieres of Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters.
• There's a new Simpsons at 8 on FOX, followed by new episodes of King of the Hill, Family Guy, and American Dad.
• At 9, Lifetime has a new Side Order of Life.
• VH-1 has a new Rock of Life with Bret Michaels at 9.
• Showtime has the season premires of Dexter and Brotherhood, starting at 9.
• Also at 9: HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me, followed by a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• Discovery has a new Man vs. Wild at 10.
• MSNBC has this morning's Meet The Press at 10.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken, then new eps of Metalocalypse, Frisky Dingo, and Lucy, Daughter of the Devil.

Check your local TV listings for more.

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: 24, Brothers & Sisters, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Desperate Housewives, Heroes, House, Jericho, One Tree Hill and Smallville. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)

• At 7, NBC has a new Football Night in America, followed by the Patriots/Chargers game.
• At 8, CBS has a new Big Brother.
• FOX as The Emmy Awards at 8 (E!'s red carpet coverage started at 6).
• Nickelodeon has a new Drake & Josh at 8, followed by a new Zoey 101.
• At 9, PBS has new Mystery!
• Lifetime has a new Side Order of Life at 9.
• There's a new Iron Chef America at 9 on Food Network.
• HGTV has a new Design Star at 9.
• USA has the season finales of The 4400 and Dead Zone, starting at 9.
• VH-1 has a new Rock of Love with Bret Michaels at 9, then a new Hogan Knows Best.
• Also at 9: HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me, followed by a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• At 10, MSNBC has this morning's Meet the Press, if you missed it this morning.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 7, NBC has a new Football Night In America, followed by the Giants/Cowboys game.
• At 8, CBS has a new Big Brother.
• Food Network has a new Challenge at 8, followed by a new Iron Chef America.
• At 9, PBS has a new Mystery!
• HBO has the series premiere of Tell Me You Love Me at 9, then the season premiere of Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• Lifetime has a new Side Order of Life at 9, then a new State of Mind.
• There's a new episode of The 4400 on USA at 9, followed by a new Dead Zone.
• History Channel has a new Ice Road Truckers at 9.
• VH-1 has a new Rock of Love with Bret Michaels.
• WE has a new Bridezillas at 9.
• Also at 9: HGTV has a new Design Star.
• At 10, A&E has a new Two Coreys.

Check your local TV listings for more.

It must be great to be rich and well-known. You can go completely out of your area of expertise and actually have professionals looking for your opinion.

That's what I thought of when I read this story about Curb Your Enthusiasm/Seinfeld creator Larry David. He's consulting with New York Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum and coach Eric Mangini about their draft choices. Turns out David is a big, big football fan, and called the Jets up last year to give them some advice. They didn't listen to him last year, but this year they're actually talking to him.

This could be a trend. I want to hear Rosie O'Donnell's advice on who the Red Sox should trade before the All-Star Game break, and I wonder if Andy Dick knows how well David Beckham is going to do in Los Angeles?

[via TV Tattle]

Veteran comic/director/writer David Steinberg has a lot of stuff going on.

The second season of his TV Land talk show, Sit Down Comedy, began a couple of weeks ago with an interview with Jerry Seinfeld. This Wednesday, Steinberg sits down with Daily Show host Jon Stewart. The show airs at 10pm. The following weeks, Steinberg will interview Garry Shandling and then Ray Romano.

But that's not all: Steinberg also has a book coming out in June, The Book of David. And he's a busy guy in his life as a director too. He's directing his seventh season at Curb Your Enthusiasm, episodes of Campus Ladies, and a pilot for Dane Cook.

There might be a lot of people who aren't familiar with Steinberg since a lot of his work has been behind the camera for a while, but he has quite a resume.

It's time once again for our annual Festivus contest, but this time we're asking for something quite different. Last year we asked for readers to prove to us that they were the ultimate Festivus celebrant, which got us some interesting entries to say the least.

This year we're asking you, dear readers, to post to us some of your own, original, TV and/or Festivus themed lyrics that work in place of a popular existing song. So, for example, you could tell us you're replacing the lyrics for 'O Christmas Tree', give us your new title (like 'O Men In Trees') and then your own lyrics that work within the song and apply to the new title. We'll pick one winner out of the bunch on December 19th, just in time for Festivus!

And what does the winner get? Read on for those details and some rules.

Vivica A. Fox will be joining the cast of Curb Your Enthusiasm for the show's sixth season, which kicks off next year. According to Hollywood Reporter, there's not much information, though information points to Fox playing the member of a black family who moves into the David's home after a natural disaster. So there you go, Vivica A. Fox will be playing a black woman, and frankly, I couldn't be happier. I was starting to grow tired of seeing her constantly playing an elderly Chinese man.

The storyline is meant to spoof the events of Hurricane Katrina, as well as race relations. I imagine we can look forward to Larry saying something incredibly inappropriate. The article doesn't mention whether Fox's character will stay on the show or whether she'll only be part of this specific storyline.

The Best:

Battlestar Galactica: Holy Frak, does this show kick ass. I barely caught the old version of this show back-in-the-day, though from what I saw, it just can't be compared. If you think you'd be uninterested in overly sci-fi aspects of a show like this, throw those fears aside. There are no aliens and no light sabers. Pick up this series on DVD now and get caught up before next week, for Gods sakes!

The Shield: Has yet to disappoint, and this past season's inclusion of Glenn Close was masterful. I have to admit that I was skeptical when I heard she was coming aboard for a season, at first. In the end, though, I wished she was able to stay. Now coming on its (likely) final season, I'm very sad to see it go, and I'll savor every moment of it.

Veronica Mars: As some of you may know, I wrote about my experiences catching up with season one within a week or so, and I fell in love with this show. The second season has lived up to...no...beyond my expectations. The rest of this season is likely going to place this show on my Best of 2006 next January.

Hello. My name is Keith and I'm a spoiler junkie. 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 - your anonymity is guaranteed if you wish to remain as such. Now let's get down to business ... (SPOILERS BELOW)