TVSquad

(S01E07) You know, even without Dominic Monaghan appearing (save for one scene), this episode really captured my attention. There was some further development in the blue hand case, but for the most part it was about the people of the cast and how they're dealing with their lives at this point between the blackouts and the time of their visions.

Since the beginning, I've been waiting to find some confirmation as to whether these were inevitable futures, or just possible futures. And every week, I got more and more proof that it just seems like they're racing toward these inevitable destinies. Even the contradicting visions, like Zoey's vision of her wedding with Demetri, and his lack-of-vision left room for interpretation: she was a bit away from him on that beach.

But really, this episode was about Al Gough. We finally got to see the rest of his vision, and it's a doozy. Plus, Fiona showed up in the Los Angeles office, where she and Al meet again ... for the first time.

Yet another ER veteran is coming back to the show for a last-season guest spot.

Alex Kingston will reprise her role as Dr. Elizabeth Corday in the January 15 episode. She'll come back when Neela has to interview with her for an attending job. If you remember, Corday was married to Dr. Mark Greene but inevitably had to leave the show after he died and there really wasn't much for her to do (those episodes where she dated others just didn't ring true).

What's happening on ER these days? It must be something big because the NBC hospital drama made a huge comeback last week, beating out a repeat of Without a Trace with 15.4 million viewers. Yes, it was a repeat. But, even the repeats on CBS have been kicking NBC's butt lately.

I gave up on ER years ago, even before George Clooney left, because I couldn't handle having a major emotional breakdown each week. I tuned in for a couple of key episodes over the years: i.e. when Lucy and Carter got stabbed in the kidneys, when Doug left, when Carol left, and when Dr. Green died.

So tell me, is it any good?