TVSquad

Tricia Helfer is hot. Really, really hot. She's also in demand as an actress now that Battlestar Galactica is coming to an end. Helfer just inked a one-year talent deal with Fox. The network will likely place her in a starring role in a drama within the next year.

While she's known to us as Six (or Caprica), it was her work in a pilot last season that got her noticed at Fox. She had a role in the drama pilot Them. Fox execs say that work, and her appearance in an indie flick called Walk All Over Me, won them over.

This is bittersweet news, really. Tricia Helfer is a spectacular actress and, on BSG, she has proven that her beauty is just secondary to her acting abilities. But BSG is such a smart, well-written show that anything else--especially some sort of procedural--seems beneath Helfer. I really hope Fox finds something to showcase her extraordinary talent. Otherwise, it's kind-of like seeing Nathan Fillion on Desperate Housewives. I'm happy that he's working, but sad that there isn't better stuff out there for him.

[via PopCandy]

So, you're sitting in front of your flat-screen, watching your Season Three DVD of Battlestar Galactica, in anticipation of the new season starting April 4th, and you happen to glance over at your 2-Slice stainless steel toaster. As you stare at your reflection in the gleaming metal you think 'Hey, if I put some flashing lights on the face of that toaster it would look like a Cylon's head. But, who in hell would be interested in seeing something like that other than myself?'

Funny you should think that, because someone is interested in seeing your creation. In fact, three someones in the form of Scifi.com, dvice.com, and Make magazine are willing to judge your work, along with others, to see who can mod or make a Cylon from scratch. If they like what you made they'll give you a chance to show your creation on the SCI FI Channel.

And you thought putting blinking lights on your toaster was stupid, didn't you?

Battlestar Galactica executive producer David Eick, along with writer John McNamara and director Jonathan Mostow, are bringing a new sci-fi thriller to Fox.

Entitled Them, the project is based on Michael Oeming and Daniel Berman's graphic novel Six. Taking a page from Battlestar's metaphorical take on the war in Iraq, Them will be working the sleeper cell angle. The premise of the show involves extraterrestrial terrorists who take on the shape of humans. Their mission is compromised when they begin to acquire human emotions, which act like a drug on them. Eick reported to Variety, "Them is about the war on terror, writ large."

In addition to Them and his continued work with Battlestar, Eick is working on The Bionic Woman for NBC.

So excited for Them. Not so excited for The Bionic Woman.

Now, this is pretty nifty!

If you ever wanted to see your favorite Battlestar Galactica characters as they would look in the universe of The Simpsons, here's your chance. Artist Dylan Meconis has produced a number of sketches portraying all of your favorite BSG personalities and placed them on her website at LiveJournal under the heading Battlestar Galacticsimpsons. They're all there: from Admiral Adama and President Roslin enjoying an awkward moment of romance, to Boomer with her Cylon clone friends.

Actually, it all began with a picture of Six and Baltar (the picture you see to the right) in what looks like some sort of seductive dance. That image was so popular that Meconis decided to work in the entire cast. The response to her work has been very positive, with some commenters saying that Matt Groeing should call her directly and hire her on the spot. Hey, The Simpsons will be around for eternity and I'm sure they could use some new blood when the other artists die off of sheer exhaustion.

For more of Meconis' work, and well as information about her, please see her Quirkybird website.

[Thanks to both Jamie and Ryan for this tip]

As Bob mentioned, Monk kicks off its fifth season this evening on USA. I'm a late comer to the show and only started watching it recently. Why I didn't start watching this dry, witty show when it began is really anyone's guess. Nevertheless, I've been using the power of Tivo to catch up. In fact, my Tivo is currently in the process of recording a Monk marathon on USA. Monkheads both new and old will also be happy to know that USA has also bought a sixth season of the series, so we'll be able to follow the adventures of the obsessive-compulsive detective who hates being touched for at least the next couple of years.