TVSquad

Director Steven Spielberg is interviewed on the new deluxe Alias DVD set that was released last week.

No, Spielberg didn't produce the show or even direct an episode, but it is one of his favorite TV shows and he admires creator/director J.J. Abrams so much that he agreed to be interviewed for the set.

Spielberg liked the show so much that he actually asked Abrams to write the War of the Worlds movie for him, but Abrams couldn't do it because he was working on Lost. Of course, after that, Tom Cruise also contacted Abrams because he was a big fan of Alias (he got the DVDs and watched them all in one weekend, as he has said many times in interviews) and he hired Abrams to write the third Mission: Impossible movie.

On a related note, I had planned on buying the Alias set this month, but after buying the West Wing and Twilight Zone sets and it being Christmas and all, I really don't want to spend the money right now. But if any TV Squad reader (or coworker of mine) would like the buy the set for me, well, I wouldn't say no to that at all.

[via TV Tattle]

(S18E04) I always try to give the Simpsons Halloween specials the benefit of the doubt, because obviously when they first decided to do one for each season, starting with "Treehouse of Horror I" in season two, they probably weren't thinking they might have to keep coming up with three new vignettes every year for almost two decades, with no clear sign of stopping anytime soon.

So I cut the series a little bit of slack when it comes to these Halloween episodes, because sometimes you just run out of scary things to spoof and you end up creating something like "You Gotta Know When to Golem," about a mystical Jewish creature who becomes Bart's unwitting slave. But even though this was the least of the three stories this year, it did have some funny moments. I loved how the family created a bride for the Golem out of Play-Doh, and how the Golem turned from a silent killing machine to a neurotic freak that won't shut up the moment he's allowed to speak.

No spoilers in this preview, Simpsons fans.

I'll have a few review when the episode airs on November 5, but here's a taste of what you can look forward to:

The first vignette, titled "Married to the Blob," spoofs the classic camp classic The Blob, this time with Homer becoming an ever-enlarging mass of man-blob who just can't stop himself from eating every person he comes across. As always, it takes Marge to finally talk some sense into Homer, with a little help from guest star Dr. Phil.

• At 8, CBS has pre-season football action, the Chargers vs. the Bears.
• NBC has a new Dateline at 8.
• TLC has two new episodes of Take Home Chef, starting at 8.
• Sci-Fi has a special, Sci-Fi Inside: Stargate SG-1 200th Episode at 8, followed by new episodes of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis.
• ESPN beings coverage of The Little League World Series at 8, while ESPN2 continues their coverage of The Western and Southern Financial tennis tournament.
• HBO has War of the Worlds (the remake) at 8, while HBO Comedy has The 40 Year Old Virgin.
• At 9, ABC runs the latest Kyle XY.
• USA has a new Monk at 9, followed by a new Psych.
• MTV2 is running a Celebrity Deathmatch marathon all night. Set your TiVos!