TVSquad

I started watching Law & Order during the Briscoe and Green days, so I don't know a whole lot about Detective Rey Curtis, Briscoe's former partner from '94-'99. What I do know is that Benjamin Bratt is pulling a Chris Noth and returning to the show that gave him his big break.

Bratt, whose A&E series, The Cleaner, was just canceled, is reprising his role as Detective Rey Curtis on the original Law & Order. However, it doesn't look like the current crime-fighting duo of Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) and Bernard (Anthony Anderson) have anything to worry about: Bratt is only signed up for one episode.

The actresses who have been competing for the Primetime Emmy award in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series category these past few years are some of the top names in the business. Two-time Oscar winner Sally Field for Brothers & Sisters, multiple Emmy winner -- including last year's award -- Glenn Close for Damages. Previous winner Mariska Hargitay for Law & Order: SVU. Oh, yes, there's also Saving Grace's Holly Hunter, another former Oscar winner, and Golden Globe winner Kyra Sedgwick for The Closer.

All these ladies are worthy of winning nominations again, and it wouldn't be surprising to see one or all of them nominated. But if I were to have a say, there are some other women I hope to see recognized when the Primetime Emmy nominations are announced this Thursday.

More good news out of NBC's top drama. Wentworth Miller is guesting on Law and Order: SVU, and this time he's not going to be behind bars. The Prison Break actor will star in the September 23 premiere of Law and Order: SVU, which is kicking off its 11th season on the NBC.

Wentworth Miller's casting comes on the heels of NBC re-signing of Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni to two-year extensions as the show's mainstays, Detectives Benson and Stabler, as well as the return of Stephanie March as Alex Cabot and a four-show arc for Christine Lahti. I'd say that the powers-that-be are stacking the deck with prime talent to make sure Law and Order: SVU maintains its top quality status.

Well, that's a relief. After months of speculation that NBC would be bringing Law & Order: SVU back for the 11th season without the two stars that have anchored the show, there's good news. Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have re-signed with SVU. They pair agreed to stick with NBC's top-rated Neilsen drama for two more seasons.

Good news is probably an understatement. It's really great news because with SVU moving to Wednesday, 9 p.m., the show really didn't need to shake up the cast at this point in time. Stability mattered and NBC found a way to bring the two stars into the fold, offering them both the flexibility they sought.

This doesn't come as a surprise, does it? NBC has ordered an 11th season of Law & Order: SVU. It isn't a surprise because of all the shows on NBC's roster – not including ER, which just had a celebrated swan song – are struggling in the ratings. Law & Order SVU is the lone exception, still drawing nearly 10 million viewers and at least keeping NBC challenging in the Tuesday night ratings.

It's not as strong as it once was, but what show is on NBC? It would have been network hari-kari to let SVU hit the road.

There's a reason why when you watch The Mentalist, there are always subtle close ups of Simon Baker's eyes or of his mouth when he's talking. The producers know he's hot and they know women are watching. Between him, the cast of Friday Night Lights, and a whole other list of DILF's, there's a lot of male eye-candy on TV right now. But what about the women? Of course television is filled with hot chicks, but who do other women like to watch?

There are certain female characters who, when you watch them, you just want to hang out with. Either you think she'd be a good friend, or exciting to have around, or maybe you just kind of want to be her. This, my friends, is a Girl Crush. Here is my list of Top Ten TV Girl Crushes.

On Two and a Half Men, Charlie Sheen plays a vulgar playboy, a shallow guy who's more interested in booze, women and having a good time than being responsible and working hard. The role has earned him a couple of Emmy nominations and a lot of money. A lot of money. In fact, in a new poll from TV Guide, Charlie Sheen is the highest paid actor on TV, making $825,000 per episode; in a season of 23 shows, that comes out to nearly $20 million.

That's more than he could make in the movies, and unlike films, Charlie can keep on raking it in on Two and a Half Men for years. The show is a huge hit in syndication, so more episodes will simply mean more money down the road.

Right behind Charlie on the list is fellow CBS leading man, CSI's William Petersen. He's making $600,000 an episode. He's only doing ten episodes this season, but since he's also an executive producer on the series, he's probably making even more.

When Law & Order: SVU returns on September 23, it's bringing a trio of guest stars with it. Luke Perry (90210), Sara Gilbert (Roseanne, 24), and Julie Bowen (Ed, Lost) are all set to make appearances. Perry and Bowen play a couple accused of abusing their foster child. Gilbert is on board to play the child's biological mother.

In addition to the main foster-child abuse storyline, the premiere is going to deal with Benson's (Mariska Hartigay) attempted rape a the end of last season, as well as Fin's (Ice-T) possible transfer out of SVU. The premiere also marks the debut of the new ADA played by Michaela McManus (One Tree Hill).

SPOILERS AHEAD!!! DO NOT READ ANY FARTHER IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW SEASON OF SVU!!!!

The big news about the season premiere of NBC's Law & Order: SVU is not that it is the show's 9th season, or the fact that Cynthia Nixon guest-stars in a pretty chilling role. The big news is that Mariska Hargitay cut her hair! How could she? Frankly, I loved her long locks.

But, I guess that she didn't, and they seem to be back to pre-season 7 length (don't ask me how I know this). Plus, even after the events of last season's finale, her character Olivia Benson still seems to be partnered with Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni). From the promo you'll see after the jump, they'll need to work very closely together.

(S08E21) I hate it when the promos ruin an episode. It's hard to tell whether this episode of SVU was a good one because I knew from the promos that the girlfriend was a "black widow". It took a really, really long time for the story to unfold and I felt impatient because I wanted to see the evil side of this girl.

(S08E19) This was the best episode this season, hands down. Det. Olivia Benson's entire world came crashing down around her. Her entire motivation for being an SVU detective was brought into question. There was an awful lot revealed in this episode about Benson's past.

The writers and Mariska Hargitay did a spectacular job convincing me that she had completely lost her mind. Det. Benson appeared to be blindly helping her brother evade the law because she couldn't believe that he was a rapist, just like their father. After the last episode with Simon, I fully believed that he was guilty and I thought she did too.

Lead actors Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have both agreed to stick around on Law & Order: SVU for two more seasons. It seems that money did the talking. Variety is reporting that both actors received about a $6.5 million raise for each year season. The publication says Hargitay is going to receive approximately $300,000-$340,000 per episode, pushing her up among the highest-paid female actors on television. Looks like baby August gets to go to private school!

Both actors had a hell of a lot of bargaining power in their contract negotiations. That show delivers consistently strong ratings for NBC and it absolutely would not be the same without Dets. Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler (Think: The X-Files without Mulder and Scully). Let's hope the network gives an incentive to keep Richard Belzer around, too.

SVU is currently in season 8, which means we're guaranteed seasons 9 and 10, which is exactly how long the sexual tension will last.

The nominees for the 13th annual Screen Actors Guild awards were announced earlier this morning. Like the Golden Globes, the SAG awards focus on both movies and television. We don't give a darn about the movie nominees (that's what our sister site Cinematical is for), but we very much care for the television nominations. That's because we are, you know, TV Squad. So, here they are:

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

James Gandolfini, The Sopranos

Michael C. Hall, Dexter

Hugh Laurie, House

James Spader, Boston Legal

Kiefer Sutherland, 24 / 24 – Jack Bauer - FOX

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series

Patricia Arquette, Medium

Edie Falco, The Sopranos

Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Kyra Sedgwick,The Closer

Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy

(S08E10) This episode was all about Elliot's concern about growing apart from his daughters. The beginning of the episode shows Elliot in church with his fractured family and his middle child hating him very much. He is tipped off to an investigation from his priest, who heard the confession of a man dying of lung cancer. He won't tell Elliot what the confession was, but he suggests Elliot visits the man, named Judson Tierney (played by Brian Dennehy).