TVSquad

(S05E15) "Oh, god no, Tommy. No, if you're affectionate with me, I might actually start liking you." - Janet

See? This is what I meant earlier in the season when I said that no strings for Janet and Sheila doesn't mean no strings for Tommy. The guy cannot have meaningless sex with either of these women. But whenever he tries to bring more to the table, whether it be a hug or an expression of concern, both woman have shot him down. Lou was right last week - Tommy is a whore. His payment is supposed to be the lack of strings attached and to complete this terrible analogy, the bank in his heart has no idea how to deposit that kind of currency.

(S05E14) "What, you think elder statesmen such as I don't think about things like this, huh? I do have the biggest dick in the department and have been known to use it!" - Chief Feinberg

This was one of those "I had forgotten about that!" episodes. That Feinberg quote is a perfect example. Remember when Tommy glanced his eyes at Sydney's junk a few seasons back? It was hilarious. Another thing from the past that got brought up? Colleen was a lesbian! At first it seemed like a bit of a running joke, but now I'm convinced of it -- sexually speaking, it seems like she really has tried everything. Black Shawn really needs to start embracing that ... or at least get over his peanut butter phobia.

(S05E13) "...cause the only thing he can feel is heat." - Tommy's dad

I never want to look at a blow torch again.

I gotta say - I never saw that coming. We've known for some time now that Tommy doesn't feel too much. It takes a lot for him to get passionate about anything and when a glimmer of emotion does emerge, it's usually in the form of yelling and obscenities. I just hope he doesn't develop an affinity for his latest attempt at "feeling."

(S05E10) "See? I told you he's got it under control." - Mike

As fans, we've really been rooting for a horrible thing if you think about it. The fact that we've all been waiting for Tommy to start full-blown drinking again is pretty twisted and now that it's been going on for a few episodes, we're starting to see the Tommy we remember - both the good and bad.

The issue of control is an obvious path to explore. We' ve seen Tommy lose it before - when we first met him, his original downward spiral was just beginning. That being said, I don't think any of us ever expected a year of sobriety to do him any good.

Jeremy Sisto will replace Milena Govich as a detective on the original version of Law & Order. Sisto was on NBC last season in the failed series, Kidnapped, and is perhaps best known for his role as Brenda's crazy brother, Billy, on Six Feet Under.

I'm not sure how they're going to write his character into the show, considering the actor guest-starred on the season finale last month as a defense attorney. I didn't see that episode (apparently my Jeremy Sisto radar was turned off) so I don't know if he had any sort of background as a detective, or if L&O will just ignore the fact that he guest-starred and recast him as a detective by a different name.

It's a bittersweet announcement, really. Jeremy Sisto is a terrific (and super hot) actor, yet he has taken a role on a show that has dropped in the ratings and almost wasn't renewed this season.

Folks, I never got into this job to be a red carpet/party reporter. I'm not good in noisy crowds of people I don't know, and I'm especially not good at fighting other people to be heard in a group. But when I found myself on the press side of the red carpet for the premiere of NBC's Kidnapped last night, I tried to do my best.

The red carpet consists of whatever stars are coming to the premiere slowly walking down a procession of press people: first they pose for photographers, then they talk to television and other video outlets, then they answer questions from lowly print outlets like us. I decided to hang out at the end of the line and catch what I could, since I'd also be going to the screening and the afterparty (which also doubled as the NYTVF launch party). And since I was on the Kidnapped set a few weeks ago (that post is in the works), there wasn't much more to ask the principals that I hadn't already. But it was still an interesting evening. After the jump, a few pictures of my night.

(S01E11) Didn't Stephanie March have shorter hair last week?

This week we have another instance of Nick Potter (Jordan Bridges) wrestling with his demons. He's trying to save a reformed gang member from jail and he goes over ADA Jessica Rossi's (Milena Govich) head to Bureau Chief Alexandra Cabot (March), who recommends a lesser sentence. I thought we got over Nick's psychological problems with his mugging last week, but this episode may be out of order. On a side note, we get to see very little of Rossi this week. Her only storyline is to establish that she's not a high-class gal because she doesn't know what 'Cocktail Attire' means or what Foie Gras is.

(S01E10)  I really wanted to like this show, but I just don't. I'm going to finish out the season (please, God make it end soon) and then it's being deleted from my TiVo Season Pass. I don't like it because of the multiple storylines in each episode. It goes from story to story so quickly that I still don't feel invested in any of the characters. Plus, it's hard to follow the stories when they're so fragmented and there are so many of them.

(S01E09)  I totally hated the judge on ADA Steele's case. He made my blood boil as he kept ruling against Steele and pushing for a lesser charge against a high school kid who killed a classmate. I know I wouldn't have kept my cool the way Steele did. But, was he right to continue with the murder charges? The judge's original offer for a lesser charge was for 1-3 years in jail. Steele refused to reduce the charge, got his conviction (no thanks to the judge), and then the judge reduced the charge anyway and put the kid on probation. Steele had to know that the judge had the ability to do this. He had to see it coming, right? Or is he just so stubborn and self-absorbed that he can't see past his own nose? He didn't seem to be fighting for the victim, rather for himself.

(S01E08) So... the beginning of Conviction was cut off here in Portland because the Trailblazers/Lakers game ran long (Surprise, surprise: the Blazers lost 99-110). If there were any good, steamy sex scenes to kick off the episode like there were last week, I missed 'em.

Let me just say outright, what I don't like about this show is the way that Alexandra Cabot has become such a bitch. While on SVU, she was unorthodox, but passionate. Now her priorities are her career and she seems to have forgotten what it was like to live and breathe for a victim.

(S01E07) Surpise! Did everybody's TiVos or DVRs catch Conviction last night? Mine didn't! Luckily, I was flipping through the channels and I saw that it was on. TiVo is currently in a time out.

So, NBC put Conviction on a Tuesday night where Law & Order: SVU usually airs. This is obviously a ploy to get the SVU crowd interested in Dick Wolf's new ADA lovefest (seriously, the guy is in love with prosecuting attorneys). The problem is, it's very different than the procedural drama that we know as Law & Order. Could you imagine tuning in last night for the first time and wondering who on earth all these people are? Sheesh.

I thought this week's episode of Conviction was much, much better than last week's episode. I still think that there are too many storylines in each episode, making it hard to care too much for any particular character. But, the multiple storyline thing seems to be the M.O. for this show. So be it.

Is anybody else wondering where this show is going? It's trying to balance a procedural drama, which is Dick Wolf's cup of tea, with a bunch of personal storylines, which are usually not included in Dick Wolf shows. It seems clumsy, fragmented, and packed with too much information. I still don't know any of the characters' names and I feel like I'm not getting any time to get to know them because the show jumps from character to character so quickly.