TVSquad

Jesse Spano is coming back to TV. After guest appearances on CSI: Miami and Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Elizabeth Berkley is ditching the procedurals and heading over to Showtime. The former Saved by the Bell star will be joining Jennifer Beals, her costar in the 2002 film Roger Dodger, on Showtime's The L-Word for a multi-episode arc.

Word is, Berkley's L-Word character has a history with Jennifer Beals' Bette. The two went to college together and Berkley was the straight girl who got away. Perhaps Bette will have better luck the second time around.

My only hope for this pairing is that they can somehow manage to fit a Flashdance: What a Feeling / I'm So Excited dance-off into the plot of the show, thus bringing together the high points of both of these women's careers and officially making this the best casting decision ever.

Producers of CSI: Miami have found a new coroner. Starting this season, The 4400's Megalyn Echikunwoke will fill the role vacated by Khandi Alexander. Alexander parted ways with the series after six years due to her alleged unhappiness with the show *cough* David Caruso *cough.*

There isn't much known about Echikunwoke's character, other than she'll be the new coroner. For instance, her affinity for the phrase "aw sugar" and her feelings on whether or not the victims on the table "left this world too soon" are, at this point, a mystery.

As I started watching the premiere episode of this season of Burn Notice, I was reminded of one of the things I really love about the show...the scenery. Unlike CSI:Miami, BN is actually shot in Miami and while it's hard to put your finger on why it makes a difference, it's undeniable that a difference is made. It's the same difference you see when you watch Law & Order and CSI: New York back to back.

At the end of last season it seemed like Michael was on the verge of finding out who burned him and why. Now, most of the time that would mean that the series is one step closer to coming to an end, but fans of the show know better.

Cane may be gone from the landscape of fictional South Florida, but the actor who starred in that CBS drama seems bound to remain in the Miami area. Emmy-winner Jimmy Smits will be joining the cast of Showtime's Dexter in the new season.

Dexter, which stars Michael C. Hall as a serial killer who murders those he feels deserve to die and remains under the radar thanks to his job as a blood-splatter expert in the Miami Police department, was a breakout hit for Showtime. CBS aired slightly-altered episodes of the twisted crime drama earlier this year, in part of fill the schedule holes created by the writers' strike -- and, ironically, the failure of shows like Cane.

We continue with our roundup of the season-ending ratings (here is the season winner and the May sweeps winner) with a list of the top 20 shows for the season. The first two shows aren't going to be a surprise to anyone (though the number of times one show shows up on the list might be surprising to some). How many shows on this list do you watch? I watch one show all the time and I watch another show a little bit. The other 18 1/2 shows I don't watch at all, which is odd because I watch a ton of television every week.

Only one sitcom made the top 20, and there was only one show from NBC. Do you know what those two shows are? Answer after the jump.

(Oh, I know The CW logo is in the pic above, but you won't find any of their shows on the list.)

• TNT has NBA Playoffs all night.
• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by the season premiere of The Bachelorette (God help us all).
• CBS has the season finales of Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men and Rules of Engagement, and CSI: Miami.
• FOX has the season finale of Bones at 8, then the season finale of House.
• NBC has a new American Gladiators at 8, then a new Dateline.
• The CW has the season finale of Gossip Girl at 8, followed by the season finale of One Tree Hill.
• There's a new Antiques Roadshow on PBS at 8.
• TLC has two new episodes of Little People, Big World starting at 8.
• Also at 8: ABC Family has a new Greek, then a new Wildfire.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Heavyweights.
• At 9, Discovery has a new Dirty Jobs.
• MTV has two new episodes of Life of Ryan at 9.
• GSN has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• TV Land has the M*A*S*H 30th Anniversary Reunion Special at 9.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Drive-Ins, Diners, and Dives.
• MTV has a new episode of The Paper at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

(S03E21 / S03E22) "Whoa, not on the menu!" - Earl Hickey

In the entire run of this series, I have never been more sympathetic to any of Earl's situations than the one he is in now. What is a man to do when he has a full-on hottie in his bed and everything she does drives him nuts? I see now why Billie and Frank got along so well.

The sad part is that it seems like Earl is destined to be shackled to women who are just plain evil. Karma takes him to Billie, he can't seem to get away from Joy and any time he meets a woman who seems half way sane, his list gets in the way. I can only hope this is all part of karma's master plan.

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by a new episode of Samantha Who? and the season finale of The Bachelor.
• CBS has a new Big Bang Theory, then new episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement, and CSI: Miami.
• NBC has a new, two hour American Gladiators at 8, then a new Medium.
• FOX has new episodes of Bones and House.
• The CW has a new Gossip Girl at 8, followed by a new One Tree Hill.
• There's a new Antiques Roadshow on PBS at 8.
• TNT has another NBA Playoff game at 8.
• At 9, USA has a new Monday Night RAW.
• Discovery has a new Dirty Jobs at 9.
• GSN has a new World Poker Tour, also at 9.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
• MTV has a new episode of The Hills at 10, then a new episode of The Paper.
• HBO has a new Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by new episodes of Samantha Who? and The Bachelor.
• CBS has a new Big Bang Theory at 8, then new episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement, and CSI: Miami.
• FOX has new episodes of Bones and House.
• NBC has a new, two hour Deal Or No Deal at 8, then a new Medium.
• The CW has a new Gossip Girl at 8, followed by a new One Tree Hill.
• PBS has a new Antiques Roadshow at 8, then a new episode of Carrier.
• ABC Family has a new Greek at 8, then a new Wildfire.
• TLC has two new episodes of Little People, Big World at 8.
• Also at 8: Food Network has a new Good Eats.
• At 9, Lifetime has the new movie The Double Life of Eleanor Kendall.
• USA has a new Monday Night RAW at 9.
• At 10, WE has the season finale of High School Confidential.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by new episodes of Samantha Who? and The Bachelor.
• CBS has a new Big Bang Theory at 8, then new episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement, and CSI: Miami.
• FOX has a new Bones at 8.
• NBC has a new, two hour Deal Or No Deal and a new Medium.
• There's a new Gossip Girl on The CW at 8, then a new One Tree Hill.
• PBS has a new Antiques Roadshow at 8, then new episodes of American Experience and Great Performances.
• ABC Family has a new Greek at 8, followed by a new America's Prom Queen.
• USA has a new Monday Night RAW at 8.
• Also at 8: TLC has two new episodes of Little People, Big World.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Heavyweights.
• At 9, VH-1 has a new Flavor of Love.
• GSN has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• At 9:30, Food Network has a new Unwrapped.
• At 10, MTV has a new episode of The Hills, then a new episode of The Paper.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Late last week, TV Guide's Michael Ausiello reported that Khandi Alexander is leaving CSI: Miami at the end of the season. Alexander is know for her fierce but tender Medical Examiner alter ego Alexx Woods. There is no word yet about how the character will depart, but Ausiello hints strongly that the reason for the departure is some issues Alexander has with an aspect of the show.

Who knows? Cast members are leaving CSI, too (first Jorga Fox and now Gary Dourdan), so maybe there is just a limit to how long you can do this kind of show (intense, lots of blood and gore, often depressing). I haven't followed the plots on CSI: Miami, so I don't know what kinds of issues Alexander would have with the show.

She is a terrific actress; one of the standout episodes for me was her grief over working on the body of a child, and how she combined tears with professionalism during the episode. She will have no trouble finding other work out there.

Reportedly, there is a search for a new medical examiner, and this one will be male.

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by new episodes of Samantha Who? and The Bachelor.
• CBS has a new Big Bang Theory at 8, then new episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement, and CSI: Miami.
• NBC has new episodes of Deal Or No Deal and Medium.
• FOX has a new Bones at 8, followed by a new New Amsterdam.
• ABC Family has a new Greek at 8, then a new America's Prom Queen.
• Also at 8: CMT has the 2008 CMT Music Awards.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Heavyweights.
• At 9, The CW has a new One Tree Hill.
• Stephen Colbert is the guest on a new episode of CNN's Larry King Live at 9.
• USA has a new Monday Night RAW at 9.
• There's a new Dirty Jobs on Discovery at 9.
• GSN has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• At 9:30, Food Network has a new Unwrapped, then a new Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
• At 10, MTV has a new episode of The Hills, then the series premiere of The Paper.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by a new Bachelor.
• CBS has a new Big Bang Theory at 8, then new episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Old Christine, and CSI: Miami.
• NBC has new episodes of My Dad Is Better Than You Dad, Deal Or No Deal, and Medium.
• ABC Family has a new Greek at 8, followed by a new America's Prom Queen.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Heavyweights.
• At 9, FOX has a new New Amsterdam.
• The CW has a new Pussycat Dolls at 9.
• There's a new Monday Night RAW on USA at 9.
• GSN has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO Comedy has a One Night Stand featuring Bill Hicks.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
• E! has a new episode of The Soup Presents at 10.
• MTV has two new episodes of The Hills at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Here are the weekly ratings, by number of viewers.

Nothing too different in the ratings this week, except for the temporary invasion from the NCAA Basketball games on CBS. American Idol is still on top, Dancing with the Stars trails right behind, and usual suspects such as 60 Minutes, Lost, Survivor, NCIS, and CSI: Miami are in the top 20.

1. American Idol - Tues (FOX)
2. American Idol - Weds (FOX)

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

Sure, we can talk about how this year's Oscars were the worst-rated in TV history, but its still came in at #1 for the week, knocking American Idol from the top slot. It also got the #5 slot with their red carpet special and the #13 slot with the Barbara Walters special. Of course, the folks at FOX aren't that worried: it still took the next three slots, and hey, the Oscars won't be on next week.

1. The Oscars (ABC)