TVSquad

This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we 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 (775) 640-8479. Your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.

This week we have spoilers for: 24, 30 Rock, Damages, Desperate Housewives, House, Lost, Melrose Place, Private Practice, and Ugly Betty. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)

Hewes & Associates is getting bigger.

FX announced yesterday that season three of Damages, which returns to FX in January and begins filming today in New York, has added four big names to the cast. Martin Short and Campbell Scott have both signed on as regulars and Lily Tomlin and Keith Carradine are joining as guest stars.

This news has me really excited. Last season, after William Hurt, Marcia Gay Harden, John Doman, and Darrell Hammond all signed on, I said it was arguably one of the finest casts ever assembled for a TV drama. With these new names added to the roster, this season is shaping up to be just as good, if not better. The only thing missing from this news? Confirmation that Ted Danson will return for at least a few eps to reprise his role as Arthur Frobisher - hopefully, he'll be back as well.

Some shows are known for amazing acting, and some for stellar writing. In Treatment falls into the latter category, though the acting was top-notch, as well. Still, in essence the show was a one-room nightly play. It was simply dialogue between two to four actors. And It was riveting.

Davey Holmes won a Writers Guild Award for his work on that series. He was nominated for Pushing Daisies, a series with a completely different tone, and yet equally brilliant writing. He's also written for Damages and is involved in the forthcoming Happy Town for ABC.

Based on the strength of his script, Holmes has secured a pilot commitment from FOX for Worthy, a proposed series that would put the network dramatically into politics. The series follows a straight-arrow Arizona politician, named Worthy, who finds himself in trouble after he's in a hit-and-run and winds up blackmailed by the mob.

FX held panels for Archer and Sons of Anarchy on Friday morning, but by then press tour fatigue had set in, and the energy in the room was low for both. It was especially low for Archer, a Adult Swim-esque spy cartoon by the creator of Sealab 2021 that most of the critics hadn't yet seen. The panel seemed to be more content with answering with wise-ass remarks that made themselves laugh but the just served to make us tired masses annoyed.

Things perked up, though, when the network presented five of its show-runners to talk about what it's like to develop edgy dramas for basic cable. But since the theme of the week has invariably been "Leno at 10," the questions often came back to the fact that NBC with one fell swoop wiped out five hours of scripted drama per week. And the show-runners took every opportunity to bash the Peacock for it.

And it got ugly: "I feel they should take the American flag down in front of the building and just put up a white one," said Rescue Me's Peter Tolan, "because they've clearly given up."

The Emmy Award nominees were announced this morning, and with the help of a lot of caffeine and my DVR, I managed to catch the announcement. Here are the nominees in the major categories, with some comment on who was nominated and who was neglected.

If you notice, the major categories have more nominees starting this year.


Outstanding Drama

Mad Men
Damages
House
Lost
Big Love
Breaking Bad
Dexter

Let's assume that there will be six nominees in the Best Drama category again this year, shall we? It wouldn't surprise me that five out of the six series that were nominated last year are once again nominated this year. Let's face it, Damages, Dexter, House, Lost and Mad Men are still powerhouse drama series and didn't let us down too much this past season.

Since Boston Legal, which was nominated last year, was canceled, it leaves space for another drama series to make its way to the nominees list. Which drama should get the spot?

FX announced their fall premiere dates today and it turns out that they've got quite the schedule lined up for the autumn months.

With Rescue Me set to end it's 22 episode fifth season on Tuesday, September 1st, it comes as no surprise that Sons of Anarchy has been scheduled to fill the Tuesday 10PM ET time-slot starting the very next week on September 8th. The motorcycle drama's sophomore season is generating a lot of buzz ever since the announcement of Henry Rollins and Adam Arkin joining the cast.

But wait - there's more!

In the DVR era, I have this new problem/blessing that happens to me every year. I jump on board these shows and then just get too busy to keep up with them and they pile up and sit there on my DVR unwatched. As an example, I just finished "Chapter 5" of John Adams last night; damn that's a good mini-series. But now that 99% of the network shows are wrapping up their seasons, I'm looking at three months of solid catch-up time.

I can also use the time to try out series I've always wanted to get into but just haven't for some reason or another; I'll use that "no time" excuse again. With more videos streaming online at Hulu (thanks ABC), seasons coming out ever faster on DVD and more vintage shows coming out the field is wide open. Of course, I'm probably taking on more than I can handle, but dammit I'm excited!

If you were speculating about whether Timothy Olyphant's character of Wes Krulik was coming back for season three of Damages, it's looking like he's not.

The edgy star's been tapped to play the lead in an FX drama pilot based on Elmore Leonard's short story "Fire in the Hole" (looking forward to the pairing of Leonard and Olyphant). The show revolves around U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Olyphant), who returns to his hometown of Kentucky.

Creator and executive producer Graham Yost describes the character this way: "He has a certain jaggedness, but he also loves his job. He is like an anachronism: He wears a hat, cowboy boots and a holster on his hip. It's a little bit like he was born 100 years too late."

(S02E13) "I've been having one helluva shitty month and someone is gonna pay." - Patty

Another great ending to another great season of television. The general consensus seems to be that season two of Damages far outpaced season one. They were pretty tied up for me - that was, until last night's finale. Just like the first season, by the time we got to the end, we'd already seen most of the episode because of all the flashbacks. Same goes this time around - season two's flash-forwards provided us with a pretty solid sense of what to expect. The beauty of Damages is that there was still about 20 minutes worth of plot holes that needed filling. Seeing it all play out, in order, was phenomenal.

• At 8, ABC has a new Scrubs, followed by new episodes of Better Off Ted, Lost, and the series finale of Life on Mars.
• CBS has the April Fool's special I Get That A Lot at 8.
• FOX has new episodes of Lie To Me and American Idol.
• The CW has a new America's Next Top Model at 8.
• At 9, NBC has a new episode of Life.
• Food Network has a new Throwdown with Bobby Flay at 9.
• Also at 9: Sci-Fi has a new Ghost Hunters.
• At 10, Comedy Central has a new South Park, then the season premiere of Reno 911!
• FX has the season finale of Damages at 10.
• A&E has a new Dog The Bounty Hunter at 10.
• MTV has a new Real World at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

Damages has lived up to the hype. After a jaw-dropping debut season that garnered Glenn Close an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her turn as Patty Hewes, the FX legal drama roared back in January amid speculation regarding whether or not the unique storytelling techniques used in season one could be re-created again. The result? Eight episodes into the new season and Damages is as thrilling as ever.

However, after learning that Patty is indeed the person being held at gunpoint in last week's final moments, it proved one thing - Patty isn't the only one in the hot seat. The creative team behind Damages should be sweating too.

• At 8, NBC has a new Knight Rider.
• FOX has a new American Idol at 8, then a new Lie To Me.
• The CW has the two-hour season premiere of America's Next Top Model at 8.
• Cartoon Network has the movie Ace Ventura Jr.: Pet Detective at 8.
• At 9, ABC has a new Lost, followed by a new Life on Mars.
• There's a Top Chef reunion show on Bravo at 9.
• Also at 9: Sci-Fi has a new Ghost Hunters International.
• At 10, FX has a new Damages.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne at 10.
• A&E has a new Dog The Bounty Hunter at 10.
• MTV has a new Real World at 10.
• Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food at 10.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Important Things with Demetri Martin.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 8, CBS has a new Old Christine, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
• NBC has a new Knight Rider at 8, followed by new episodes of Life and Law and Order.
• FOX has a new American Idol at 8.
• At 9, ABC has a new Lost, followed by a new Life on Mars.
• PBS has a new American Masters at 9.
• History Channel has a new MonsterQuest at 9.
• There's a new Spectacle on Sundance Channel at 9.
• Sci-Fi has a new Ghost Hunters International at 9.
• Fine Living has a new Whatever, Martha at 9.
• At 10, FX has a new Damages.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne at 10.
• A&E has a new Dog The Bounty Hunter at 10.
• MTV has a new Real World at 10.
• Also at 10: Bravo has a new Top Chef.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Important Things with Demetri Martin.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 7, G4's Attack of the Show reports from the NY Comic Con.
• At 8, NBC has a new Knight Rider, followed by a new Life and a new Law and Order.
• CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
• FOX has a new, two-hour American Idol.
• At 9, ABC has a new Lost, then a new Life on Mars.
• There's a new Ghost Hunters International on Sci-Fi at 9.
• At 10, FX has a new Damages.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne at 10.
• MTV has a new episode of The Real World at 10.
• A&E has a new Dog The Bounty Hunter at 10.
• Also at 10: Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has the season premiere of Important Things with Demetri Martin.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.