As everyone lost their powers in the eclipse (who didn’t see that coming?), the characters had to find their way again and learn to live, however briefly, without their powers.

They were acting somewhat like they did when they first discovered their powers: Uncertain, hesitant, willing to take risks but not ridiculously so.

The confusion Claire felt in testing the limits of her power back in Season 1 was echoed in Elle and Sylar’s confusion over the loss of theirs Monday night. The competition and bickering between Nathan and Peter harkened back to their arguments over whether or not either of them even had any powers, before Nathan accepted that he could fly.

Why, exactly, does the eclipse matter?  And how did they not have these powers before the eclipse? How did their parents know who had powers and who didn’t? (Guess it could have been blood tests?) It doesn’t make any sense. How would an eclipse have any affect on their powers?

Even Hiro’s reversion to a 10-year-old wasn’t so annoying, because he even seemed to be back to that child-like innocence and idealism that made him so endearing in Season 1. Totally loved it when he started throwing corn at Matt. It was completely random, but Hiro was right. Matt had to do what he had to do. Without Hiro’s corn-tossing, it wouldn’t have happened.

Daphne, I found interesting. The reason she has had such a hard time not working for Arthur Petrelli is because without being a speedster, she’s crippled. Literally. The question is, how did she get her power? Was it activated by the last eclipse? Again, that doesn’t make sense. And if not, then how did Arthur Petrelli manage to give it to her without the catalyst (Claire)?

Mohinder still annoys the crapola out of me. Have to admit, I enjoyed it when he was smashed up against the glass wall.

I enjoyed seeing the Haitian back. I really didn’t want to have another character introduced, though. The Haitian’s brother with the impenetrable skin just needs to go away. Of course, he’s a Level 5 baddie working not at cross-purposes with Arthur Petrelli.

Question is, if everyone’s powers return, do they return as they were before the eclipse? Or will Peter get his primary power back, but have to regain his other powers? Would Sylar still have all his powers because his body actually learned how to rewire, rather than absorbing the powers like Peter? Would Arthur have just his power-sucking power, or all the powers he’s soaked up?

I suppose we’ll find out next week.

In other news, Tim Kring apologized to fans who don’t use DVRs to record the show for calling them “saps and dips***s.”

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

Last night’s episode of Heroes was, simply put, silly.

It seems, apparently, that all that is needed to counter any bad power any Hero has is luv. Or, luvvvvvvv.

Look, I’ve been arguing against the Heroes haters this season. I’ve enjoyed it very much, for the most part, and have thought the storyline good.

But last night? As some on the internetz say, “wtf?”

Daphne’s luv of Matt saves him from the dastardly Arthur Petrelli. Angela Petrelli reminding dearest Arthur of the luv the once shared saves herself from the dastardly Arthur Petrelli. Sylar remembering how Elle saved his life makes him luv her and, in the end, saves her. He has empathy — which can, sometimes, be considered to be love of a sort.

Claire loves her Hero, Peter, and must help save him. Peter loves his niece (and girlfriend in real life, ick!), Claire, and doesn’t want her to turn to the dark side. Trikkica (Tracey/Nikki/Jessica) loves herself and just wants to be in with the in crowd.

Oh, please, people.

That’s the best you can do, Heroes? Really? I mean, really?

Then we had to be subjected to Arthur chatting up Mohinder the Fly in one of the worst bits of foreshadowing EVAR. “Oh, you’re interested in solar phenomenon, too?”

It sounds like a really lame pickup line.

I also got really annoyed by Hiro’s transformation into a 10-year-old. Why didn’t Arthur just take away Hiro’s power, like he does with everyone else? Was it that he wants to make sure someone still has that ability so he can order him around? Admittedly, he wasn’t finished with Hiro, somehow Ando managed to get Hiro to teleport away, but the regression to a 10-year-old is just weird. Is that simply a byproduct of not finishing the mind meld or just lazy writing?

And the entire Sylar/Elle storyline was too precious for words. With cool lightning bolt effects, but when she started to help him learn his new power when he’s standing there all shirtless? Oh, please. This is Heroes, not 90210.

Still — toldja Elle was the mother of Sylar’s child. (Like that was hard to guess, but even so …)

OK, OK, enough bashing.

There were a few things not completely unworthwhile about yesterday’s episode, and they were:

• There’s a third part to the formula? Orly? So Claire’s the catalyst. That would explain why they faked her death to get her away from her mother. They must have chosen her because both her parents’ families were rife with powers. The product of such a union must be able to withstand virtually anything. So storing the catalyst there would seem safe. I’m curious who Meredith’s parents were, though. If anyone thinks by this point that there’s anyone out there with powers that The Company or the Petrellis don’t know about, they’re fooling themselves.

• Sylar can now harness new powers without opening people’s skulls. Bonus. W

ill he be the one to help Peter regain his powers?

• This part of the season is nearly over. Next up is a two-parter called The Eclipse. From what I read somewhere (I swear I bookmarked the link, but I can’t find it, I think it was on TVGuide.com — promise to update it if I find it, and if anyone else read it, please let me know in the comments below), the second half of this season is a reboot (again) and is the next “volume.”

One thing that I do like about the show is the concept that you cannot outwit fate. New York almost got blasted out of reality and our Heroes prevented it. Then there was to be a pandemic. That was avoided. Now everyone’s going to get powers and rob each other blind. Wait? OK, that last one isn’t quite as catastrophic. But they’ve been talking about avoiding the destruction of the world, so they’re trying to prevent something bad, it seems.

But what’s the point of any of these Heroes having powers if they cannot use them to better the world? If they cannot use them to save the world?

Maybe that’s what their fate is — to constantly put their lives in danger in order to save the lives of the mere mortals around them. Isn’t that, after all, what superheroes do?

Photos courtesy of NBC/Universal.

Not all daddies – mainly Papa Petrelli, with a side order of HRG.

We were due for this, of course, seeing as we have only just met Papa and didn’t even know what his power was nor how he didn’t actually “die” until just a couple weeks ago.

Long story short? WAIT – Have you watched it? If not, STOP READING NOW. There. You’ve been warned. STOP. Really. Now.

Papa is a baaaaaad man. What a freakin’ bastard.

Seriously, Linderman is basically redeemed. After one half-hearted attempt, he basically refused to kill Nathan. And Papa didn’t even blink an eye when it came to the decision to kill his first-born.

One question was answered for me, however: Peter’s abilities are natural. It seemed obvious from the convo that Mama and Papa had, where Mama was saying something about the man Peter would become once he came into his own. I think that’s why Papa, however, manages not to really care about Nathan — his firstborn was too weak to have natural abilities, had to be enhanced.

We now have the whole setup for this war between the Heroes, though. Papa’s side – not so good. Mama, who always seemed to be a really mean lady, appears to be the good guy, so to speak, in all this. Surprise, surprise.

Not everything else was at it appeared, either.

Would Sylar actually have died without Elle’s intervention?

Would Sylar have turned to good — or, at least, not to evil — had Elle not brought weird emo guy with the pretend handgun power to his apartment and played him like that? And why did Sylar not kill Elle?

We now also see HRG for the man we knew him to be at the start of the first season. He’s no innocent in Sylar’s rise to villainy.

One could even say he caused it. Not completely, not 100 percent responsible, for sure. But Sylar was trying to control his hunger. HRG got Elle to push him too far. And poor little Elle. She did like him, didn’t she? Is she the mom of Sylar’s Future Son, Noah?

I was curious, though, how Hiro managed to see all this? Was it the paste interacting with his time-traveling ability? And what about the poor unfortunate future-painter who gave the paste to Hiro. How do these guys who see the future manage to keep getting killed? First Isaac, now this guy? And now Papa can time-travel, having absorbed Hiro’s ability? Does that mean he’s gonna go back and kill Nathan?

By the way – I found it very interesting that Claire’s mommy  is the big sister of that really evil guy. I can’t remember, is he dead? Did Sylar kill him?

And, Eric Roberts has a conscience. Gives a new perspective on the Company Man episode. He knows that Claire must be the missing daughter and doesn’t have much sympathy for HRG in that respect, eh?

And nice touch – Claire’s mom caused the accident that was in the very first ep?

Lots of questions. Answers to come.

On a side note, I honestly don’t really understand why so many people are hating on this season. I’ve enjoyed most episodes. I thought the last episode, two weeks ago, was rather weak, admittedly. I can’t even remember what specifically happened, and I think life got away from me and I never blogged about it.

But most episodes this season have been chock-full of Heroes mythology and action.

I’m interested in what’s going on. Anyone with me?

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

First off, WHEW. I was exceptionally relieved that Hiro didn’t actually kill Ando. I shouldn’t have doubted him that way. Even at his most suspicious, Hiro has always loved Ando, and he’s treating his best friend like he used to: A partner, not an appendage.

That was some clever thinking on his part, too. A fake sword and fake blood? Nice job, Hero Hiro!

Of course, he doesn’t get exactly what he wanted to out of the play acting, either — he doesn’t get to meet his purported new bosses right away; he has to go to Africa first to capture a precog — i.e., someone who can see Hiro’s every move before he makes it.

I found it interesting that the African precog went willingly. He obviously knows what is coming and believes he’s better off going on his own accord. I don’t believe he is evil. I think he’s much like Isaac. The only question now is whether he’s a natural mutant or made that way. I’m betting on natural. Papa Petrelli, so far, seems to be seeking out only natural mutants.

Which brought us to our Darth Vader moment: Hey, Peter! Daddy’s not dead. Oh, and he can suck away all your powers and killed Adam Monroe (dammit! Stark is a great actor and I’d hoped to see much more of him as a villain this season), the unkillable man.

That begs the question: Does Peter have the ability to remove other people’s powers? It appears to me that Papa Petrelli is able to do that if all he wants is to gain their powers: i.e., Parkman’s dad’s telepathy/ability to get into people’s minds. Mr. Parkman’s still alive. But if he wants all your powers and to take them from you, that’s it.

But if Peter does have that ability, was he stripped of it by his father? Or must he simply dig deeper into himself to find what he’s lost?

And the other question it begs is this: How did Papa Petrelli end up immobilized? Did Mama Petrelli try to kill him because he was too power-hungry or evil? He obviously didn’t kill himself, and I somehow doubt very highly that he even tried to kill himself.

Peter should have (I can’t believe I’m saying this!) trusted Sylar/Gabriel. He truly is trying to understand himself and his powers and to bring his hunger under control. Peter can’t bring himself to trust his newfound brother who, I’m more and more convinced is a natural mutant, as opposed to Nathan.

Speaking of Nathan, bravo for Tracy for thinking on her back (she was strapped to a table, couldn’t think on her feet!) and saving herself and Nathan from Mohinder. He’s so freaked out by what’s happening to himself that he’s desperate to take down anyone he believes can help him fix himself and bring himself powers.

He doesn’t care about helping people get rid of their powers; he just wants to be a superhero and to allow anyone to be. He’s always wanted to be “special,” but he’s blinded by that desire now.

Also blinded by desire: Claire. She so wants to show everyone that she can take care of herself that she doesn’t care what she has to do to prove it. Despite the fact that she knew she would recover from being shot, she knew it would be tough for her mom to pull the trigger. She pushed for it anyhow, knowing it was the only way out. Her mom was adorable, I thought, joining her, “One of you, one of us.” I thought she handled herself pretty well, all things considered.

I did wonder, however, if Claire’s father maybe wasn’t the fat marionette guy. He obviously had control over Claire’s biological mother for quite some time. What if he was her father? He seems to have natural powers (who would have given him powers?); we know Nathan’s powers weren’t. What might that mean for offspring?

Finally, Daphne and Matt are SO cute. I love that she came back to the airport throughout the day to check on Matt, to see if he was still there. Of course Matt’s going to join the bad guys, if only to be close to Daphne. He knows she’s his future and is determined it will be a different future than the one he dream-experienced.

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

There were several jaw-droppers, I thought, in the episode, not least of all the BIG one — Hiro kills Ando?

I know, you thought I was going to say that the big one was Matt’s dad making folks see Linderman and THEN finding out that Papa Petrelli is actually giving Matt’s dad orders.

And while that was a surprise, you can’t tell me that until the second Ando slumped onto the floor, seemingly dead, that you didn’t believe Hiro would find some way to save his best buddy. But Hiro is blinded by the thought of being a hero (which is exactly why the formula is out there in the world now anyhow – Hiro couldn’t stand the thought of having to be at a desk for the rest of his life, so he disobeyed his father’s dying request/order) that he believed Ando’s death was justified if it meant being able to save the world.

At least we now know why Ando would turn against Hiro to the point of trying to take his life. The question is: Who finds Ando and saves him? The Mama Petrelli faction or the Papa Petrelli faction?

Daphne is becoming a more complex character, too (speaking of, check out this interview that TVGuide.com did with Brea Grant, who plays the speedster). We saw a bit of that last week in the flash-forwards where she’s married to Matt. But it was nice to see it in the here and now. Up until this point, she was merely an impish, superfast girl. Now we are seeing the woman she will become. Even though she is unable not to obey “Linderman,” she recognizes that, on some level. And she found Ando’s killing extremely distasteful and wasn’t afraid to say it.

Which brings us to the Papa Petrelli/Mr. Parkman reveal.

First off, I was quite surprised when Linderman appeared to Daphne. I thought he was Nathan’s hallucination. Obviously, it was more than a mere hallucination, but still I figured it had something to do, specifically, with Nathan.

Which is not to say it doesn’t. Note that Papa and Mama Petrelli appear to be on opposites sides in this Heroes vs Villains war. Maybe Linderman was Nathan’s dad? Could be, could be…

And who, exactly, are the heroes and the villains here? The Mamas or the Papas?

And now we know that Nathan also wasn’t born with powers. Was Peter? Sylar? (Or did I miss that Mama’s answer to that?) Which other Heroes were born powerless?

I don’t believe Claire was among them. It doesn’t make sense that she would have been given to HRG if she’d not had powers. She’s pretty much had it with HRG now, too. I wonder if she’s the one who ends up killing him.

It’s not bad enough that daddy dearest is now partnered with the man who stole her powers and terrified her; now he’s threatening the life of a mutant who isn’t a bad man just to kill Sylar? Claire realizes that her father, on some deep level, cannot be trusted.

It was a shame, though, that Vortex Man (I can only think of him as Bubbles, as Andre Royo so ably played that character for so long on The Wire, it was hard to get it out of my mind while watching him) got sucked into his own vortex. I think he could have been a very interesting character. Just starting to gain control over his own powers, thought to be “bad,” but just a guy who wants his family back.

Claire’s starting to see — truly, truly see — what work her father has done all these years. Is that how she ends up working for Papa Petrelli?

And quickly: Nice to see Adam back. He’s so deliciously evil. It was fun to see Hiro use his power so easily to keep Adam from strangling him. And seeing Sylar “repair” his broken neck made my neck hurt.

Now, creepiest for last: wtf is up with Mohinder? We all joked that he was turning into the fly, but it appears he actually is. Or a spider. Or some sort of insect creature that takes his victims and entraps them in some sort of weird cocoon. Too bad Dana didn’t have it in her to kill and Suresh knew that. She shoulda gone all Raid on him — kills bugs dead.

We know from Evil Future that Mohinder just hangs out in his dusty laboratory, wearing a hoodie and generally not cleaning up after himself. What, exactly, is going on, and why did his formula go so horribly wrong? Is it that whatever it is in his blood that enabled him to cure the other mutants of that strange disease in Season 1 caused the power-giving blood to mutate him in this way?

Stay tuned…

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

What was not so apparent, in retrospect, was exactly which ones are the evil ones and which are good.

Even after watching last night’s mind-twisting hour (complete with nuclear explosion, what, just halfway through???), that remains up for grabs, but I’m starting to think the obvious wasn’t so…

What? I didn’t do a spoiler alert? C’mon. It’s the day after the show, I really didn’t think I needed to … Fine. If you didn’t watch, don’t read. There. Happy now?

Thanks. I can get on with things now.

First, I want to apologize. Last week, I said Hiro & Ando were trapped on Level 5. I was incorrect, I noted last night: They are on Level 2. The primary differences appear to be that Level 5 has no air ducts, individual cells and big glass windows so Mama Petrelli and HRG can watch the mutants. On Level 2? Air ducts in the cells with covers that can be pulled out if you catch a belt buckle in them just right, very small windows on the doors and room for two per cell. (Maybe more.)

OK, since I started with the dynamic duo, I’ll take care of their storyline quickly: I’m annoyed at Hiro for not recognizing the fact that the more he pushes Ando away and doesn’t trust him, the more likely it is that Ando will actually turn into the person who murders Hiro. I mean, duh.

But even so, it was cute to see the two of them working together again, even for something as stupid as the airduct (which I’m not altogether sure that Hiro would have fit into). It was interesting for Mama Petrelli to be telling Hiro the high hopes his father had for him and that he could still save the day. If that formula is put together, the bad future we saw with all the flying people is going to happen.

And, see, that’s why Future Peter sounded so rational. He is right. They can’t allow the formula to get out there and be sold to the highest bidder. Human nature is such that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Not everyone, but enough to make things suck.

But this is the question: Is future Peter on the up and up?

Claire sure seemed to be the bad one, but is she? She’s trying to prevent the formula from being put together. She wants to stop Peter from gaining Sylar’s power, because with all his other powers, he would become truly unstoppable — plus, as we learned last night, Sylar’s power comes with a hunger. Even if you want to be good, it can be hard.

So riddle me this, Batman: Who’s the mother of Sylar’s son? (Did you notice he was named Noah, and HRG was nowhere to be seen in the bad future?) How did Sylar come to be living in Claire’s house? Her accusation that Peter had taken away everything from her – does that mean Future Peter killed HRG somehow?

So who truly is evil? Sylar only goes nuclear because his son is killed. Who among us with children can’t relate? Future Peter seems to be trying to change the past so not everyone can have a power – for a price – but is he being honest with Present Peter? Claire seems to be trying to kill Peter – Future and Present – to prevent them from … something that we’re not quite clear on yet. Might it be for noble reasons? Parkman seems to think that Peter’s a monster. What has he done?

And is Future Nathan (President? ugh) dead? Did Present Peter kill him or just badly injure him? That was unclear, but there was an awful lot of blood. (By the way, was the Present Nathan/Tracey scene where he goes all Superman on her and flies her to his apartment just too cute for words? Yeah, it made me a little queasy, too.)

And, finally, what is up with Mohinder? Obviously, he got the formula wrong, somehow. It’s not only given him super strength, stamina, etc., but also made him a super-jerk. (OK, some might argue that had happened already.) Seriously. He’s a total jerk. And now he looks like a science project. Did you catch his hand in the Future? It looked all reptilian. What, exactly, did he do to himself? And can Peter save him, somehow, with the formula from the past/present/future?

And who, exactly, is trying to get the formula?

Phew. I guess the only thing I didn’t address was Tracey’s conversation with Dr. Zimmerman. He was working for someone — some company? — that wanted to create these folks with superpowers. So do the lines break down between those who were made and those who were born? Was the company the company that Mama Petrelli works for?

Oh, and … Adam’s back!!!!!!!

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

So, Tracey’s not Nikki and Nikki is truly, madly, deeply … dead. In the coffin and everything.

But never fear, Micah can talk to machines and was able to inform Tracey that she and his mommy were born on the same day … in the same hospital … delivered by (dun dun DUN!!!!) the same doctor. Dr. Zimmerman.

Awww, Micah hugs his mom’s clone twin. Creepy.

I was glad they didn’t drag out the whole “is she or isn’t she” storyline like some other shows are wont to do. (Look, I’m a huge Lost fan, but they’re killing me! And don’t even get me started on the identity of the final Cylon.)

But I admit I was a bit surprised, and then not so much, when Doctor Zimmerman informs Tracey that she’s his creation. So are the Nikki/Tracey/Jessica line a series of clones? Or were they actual twins whose abilities were implanted in some way?

Obviously, the formula to create powers existed in whole at some point in the past. Or in the future and then the past. And we know that these mutant powers go way, way, back. Unless Adam, somehow, was sent back into the past and wasn’t really born way back in the day.

So this made me wonder, was Sylar “created” in the same way that Niktressica was? Is Mama Petrelli actually Sylar’s mother in the biological sense or more in the sense that she presided over however he was created?

On the one hand, it doesn’t make sense that she’d give up this son, when she kept two others. Unless he was the product of an affair with one of the Older Generation. Or unless they knew he had potentially fearful powers and as the son of a politician that wouldn’t be good? Or unless they purposely put him with a watchmaker, knowing that such detail work at some point would lead him to recognition of his power?

Seeing him trying to be “good” is kind of creepy, though. I was glad when he killed Sonic Boom guy (Black Canary, anyone?), indicating he wasn’t all sugar and spice, but I wasn’t clear if the other three bad guys are dead? I hope not. Their evilness and their powers promised lots of fun for future episodes.

Speaking of good vs evil, what’s up with Claire?

Her super-mom really did some number on her, but it probably was a good thing she admitted why she really wanted to learn to fight. I thought Claire couldn’t feel pain now, though, so her choking thing was kind of weird. I guess when you’re gasping for air, you’re gasping for air.

But on the sci-fi website i09, we find out the scene was written differently originally:

This scene originally took place in a deserted warehouse where Claire was surrounded by fire.

What, exactly, Claire thinks she’s doing and where she’s going, I’m not sure. Is she going to kill bad guys? Sylar? Her cheerleader nemesis back in Odessa?

As for Hiro and Ando, we saw Hiro’s mistrust of Future Ando sow the seeds of a split between the best buds. The question is, does Ando already have a power and just doesn’t know it because he hasn’t tried, or is he the beneficiary of Mohinder (aka The Fly) or The Formula?

Also, from i09, same link as above, we learn that the German movie theater scene was originally written differently:

The Hiro/Ando/Daphne scene, which currently occurs in a German movie theatre, originally took place on a train traveling through India, complete with Hiro and Ando on the roof of the train and Ando nearly falling out the side of a baggage car.

Anyhow, now Hiro and Ando are trapped on Level 5 (dun dun DUNNNNNN!), and Sylar is … accepting his confinement there?

And Daphne got away with the formula. To take it to … ??

So, what does anyone else think?

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

Last season, like most, I was dreadfully disappointed with the slow pace it took. I didn’t mind the plot arc overall (but what did ever happen to Peter’s girlfriend trapped in that alternate future with the plague?), but rather how freakin’ slow it went.

If last night was any indication, Season 3 will not suffer from that malaise.

Granted, we were treated to two full hours (sorry, I don’t watch “countdown to” shows unless it’s for Battlestar Galactica) of twists and turns that left me with whiplash. And seldom have I been so pleased to get whiplash.

There was quite a bit to digest, so I’m not going to do a start-to-finish recap. After the jump, I’ll discuss the high points and some theories I came up with last night. The theories can’t be considered spoilers, seeing as I have no inside knowledge and I quite often make completely erroneous assumptions about my favorite shows. There are tons of spoilers, though, if you didn’t watch both hours, so don’t bother clicking on “read more” if you didn’t.

Ready? See you after the jump.

Mohinder

Slightly more annoying now that he has this awesome new power (s?), I started to feel sorry for him at the end of the second episode.

The interesting thing about his new power is that he seems to have multiple new powers; or are all his powers a part of the same? He has these hightened senses, super strength (Hulk), ability to climb up walls (Spider-Man), seemingly a new-found super-sexiness to the ladies (Wolverine) and … well, his skin’s peeling off and he’s starting to mutate (eww). Into what?

Given that his blood was the antidote to the virus that kills the Mutants (sorry, I just always think of them in X-Men terms), I wonder if that’s why he is having this reaction to the Mutant-maker shot.

Has he stumbled upon the mysterious “formula” that the older generation of Mutants were protecting? Did he discover it and the older generation got it through time travel or something and took back to the past to protect?

Hiro and Ando

Of course the loveable goofball opened the safe and lost the half of the formula that can destroy the world. Why can it destroy the world? Well, obviously, it leads to that war Future Peter keeps referring to. The ability to give powers and take them away is more than man should have. Humanity has, time and again, in real life and in fiction, proven itself incapable of wielding such extreme power humanely.

I thought the trail that super-fast girl left behind her was very cool, though. Interesting that Hiro doesn’t exactly STOP time inasmuch as he slows it to almost a complete stop. That’s why Superfast Girl could move; with her super-speed, she just seemed to be moving at a normal speed to Hiro when everyone was frozen around them.

Now, the part of this story that got interesting was Ando’s seeming betrayal of Hiro in the future.

First off, the way Hiro is treating Ando in the present time because of his belief that Ando may not be trustworthy is likely the reason Ando ends up betraying him. Proof that you can’t really change the future; you may be able to change little aspects of it, but if the world’s going to end, it’s going to end.

The Mutants may have stoped the nuke from blowing up New York City, but the world’s going to hell in a handbasket in other ways. One future that may or may not have been averted is the one where Peter’s Irish girlfriend got trapped. Then there’s the one with evil Claire trying to shoot Peter. Then there’s this chaotic one where Ando betrays Hiro. Then there’s whatever future the release of the Evil Men from Level 5 has wrought.

So how does Ando get a power? Is that really Ando? Is it Sylar, pretending to be Ando, with Elle’s power? Or some other electric mutant’s power?

Speaking of …

Elle

First off, bad repair job they did on her forehead. It looks like they used Silly Putty to fix the slice Sylar had managed to carve into her forehead.

But how cool was it that her electricity just exploded and managed to knock Sylar out when he tried to get into her brain?

I felt sorry for her when she saw her father killed, though. He was a jackass, but she’d only ever wanted to please him. I think it’s good for her that she’s freed of her father. With Mama Petrelli kicking her out of the “organization,” will she join up with the good guys? It think she really liked/loved Peter when he was captured by her dad.

The Petrelli Clan

None of the Petrellis can be taken singly.

First off, it’s nice to really find out what Mama Petrelli’s power is. Dreams of the future. Who were all those people in her apocalyptic future? Sylar, sure. Adam. Nikki/Jessica/Tracey/Gina/psycho woman of the week. Was that older guy Parkman’s father? And who was the fifth? The new Evil Guy from Level 5 who takes people’s fears and turns them against them, played by Marlo from The Wire?

And if Claire’s head is cut off, does she actually die, despite what Sylar told her?

Obviously, Mama’s dreams are an interpretation of reality. Claire hasn’t worn that cheerleader outfit since the first season.

As much of a mean mama she is, she’s right about what she’s telling Future Scarred Peter. He can’t change the future. Any change he makes will just make it worse or, at least, no better. He’s setting things in motion that no one can foretell quite yet.

And so we have dueling Peters.

We have Present Peter, trapped in the body of Evil Man from Level 5 whose power was simply stated as “sound manipulation.” I have a feeling we’ll find out what that means and I’m assuming that Peter being in his body will mean that he’ll be able to use that power in the future.

And we have Future Scarred Peter. Even his powers of regeneration couldn’t repair that scar. What caused that? Considering he fully repaired himself from his nuclear detonation above the earth, you’d think he could get rid of an unsightly scar. Or is it that he doesn’t want to, he needs the reminder of whatever happened to him?

He really has become adept at handling his powers. Of course, he has a few years on Present Peter.

I was only half surprised when we found out he was Nathan’s shooter, though. Many had supposed that over the long hiatus, and I have to admit it was so unlikely that it seemed the most likely option. His reasons were interesting, though, that he’d choose to sacrifice his beloved brother for the greater good. Perhaps because his brother had once almost sacrificed himself for the greater good (getting Nuclear Peter into the stratosphere before detonation)?

Don’t blame Nathan for not being sure how he feels about it. Here’s the question though: Did Peter really revive him, or is he somehow connected to Malcolm McDowell psychically, so even though Malcolm’s dead, he still healed him? I know that sounds stupid, but …

We all know his selection as the junior senator from New York is no coincidence. And who was behind his rise to Congressman?

That brings us to …

Nikki/Jessica/Gina/Tracey/Ice Queen/Incredible Hulk/Whatever personality she feels like trying on today

Here’s my theory on Nikki: She isn’t actually Nikki. She’s Jessica. But not split personality Jessica; she’s Nikki’s actual twin sister (remember, the one who supposedly died at their father’s hand?) I believe she was never killed; I believe the Older Generation wanted to split them up. Twin mutants would figure out their powers a lot faster, I’d think, because they’d have someone to confide in.

So they were split up. Nikki was made to believe Jessica was killed. Jessica’s memories of being Jessica were somehow erased and she was brought up as someone else entirely.

I do believe Nikki was blown up last season. There’s no way that in just a couple of months, one of the top advisers to the governor of New York could come out of nowhere and no one do a background check, etc. (No Eliot Spitzer jokes, please.)

Tracey/Ice Queen is not Nikki. Plus, she has a totally different power. While it’s not impossible that Nikki could have had two powers, it would have been far more likely, I’d think, for her to fling the guy across the garage in a murderous rage, given how angry she was at him, than for her to turn him into ice.

Mark my words.

Claire

Why does Claire turn bad?

I think that part of it is Future Scarred Peter pulling away from her in present time because he’s not Present Peter. Part of it is her new connection to her birth mother. Part of it is HRG becoming partners with Sylar. Part of it is Sylar having “turned off” whatever nerves in her brain that felt pain. She no longer feels pain.

It’s a lot easier to go into a situation if you know you won’t feel any pain. I mean, sure, she can regenerate, but she always still felt the pain of the branch into her head, the cutting off of her toe, the fall from the water tower. You’ll take greater risks if you don’t feel pain. I sure would. And she herself points out that she feels less and less human.

If she’s not human, does she have to be humane?

Sylar

He’s become extremely powerful, and he can now regenerate, sure. But it’s good to see he’s not completely without an Achilles’ heel.

Whatever it is that the Organization uses to keep the mutants under its control seems to be working. How could Mama Petrelli just walk in there?

And, is she really his mother? I mean, biologically? Or is it that she’s spiritually his mother? Will be interesting to find out. Wonder if her dreams of the future foresaw that he’d be evil, and sending him off to a nice watchmaker’s family was their attempt to give him a good life and prevent him from ever discovering his true nature.

Why would he want to work for the Organization, though? Is it a matter of getting access to all the records of all the Mutants?

Evil Men from Level 5

Obviously, these men are going to wreak havoc and display their powers overtly. How much of an influence will Present Peter, trapped in Sound Manipulator’s body, be able to have over them? How, exactly, did Future Scarred Peter put Present Peter in there?

These villains, I believe, are going to become Sylar’s gang of four. He’ll plan all sorts of stuff, and when he’s finished with them, he’ll steal their powers. Of course, if he realizes Present Peter is inside Sound Manipulator, he’ll kill him right off, hoping to get all his powers in one fell swoop.

I have to admit, though, it’s nice for a change to see the Mutants using their power for evil. We know that the better side of man is not usually the one that rears its head. It’s more realistic this way.

If Heroes can keep up the pace it set in the first two hours for the rest of the season, we’re in for some ride, my friends. Some ride indeed.

Photos courtesy of NBC Universal.

If you’re on the fence about this show after last season, if it’s been so long you can’t remember whether you liked this show or why, or if you’re a Heroes diehard who never doubted and never thought you’d survive a 10-month hiatus, you will be blown away by its Sept. 22 return.

The sneak preview I enjoyed last night reaffirmed for me that this show, at its best, is very, very good. It’s not perfect, but it exceeds expectations. And expectations, rightfully, are very high for a marquee show with as fat a budget and as big a following as this one.

Last year’s writers strike was almost merciful, given the sophomore slump suffered by showrunner Tim Kring & Co. (He even apologized!) Dawdling storylines like that of Maya and her twin brother and overexposure of characters like Hiro, whose act wears thin at times, kept the second time from being much of a charm.

Well, season 3 looks like it’ll get off to a very strong start. Sure, some minor annoyances persist. Hiro still seems like he’s written for the 9-15 demographic. Peter Petrelli, too, and can he brood any more?

I won’t reveal any key spoilers or plot points, but I will talk after the jump about a few surprises, so be warned.

Sylar is back. And by back, I mean, in full evil form, though he seems to have lost a little off his fastball. He meets up with an old friend and even shows he might not entirely be his old evil self after all. That’s not really clear, but he does reveal something explosive about one of our heroes that fans have pondered extensively.

Zachary Quinto is one scary guy. The more of him the better, because his act doesn’t get old for me. I don’t know how you stretch that aspect of the show out without over-relying on it, but I hope they try and succeed.

Right off the bat, timelines are out of wack, but that’s something fans have gotten used to. Old friends appear to be enemies in one reality, but it’s to be determined if that reality ever comes to bear.

Kring kindly throws fans a bone by resolving one of the biggest mysteries of the finale, and the twist is satisfyingly twisted. Again, I’m not telling, but I think you’ll all love it.

Speaking of timelines, by the way, I get nervous when Hiro and Peter jump around a lot. It begs the uncomfortable question of why they don’t always do that with every conflict. Sure time travel can make things worse, but just keep jumping and you’ll get it right eventually, right? The laws of physics would seem to no longer apply, which wouldn’t make for an interesting story necessarily, but it annoys me this way too.

A couple of random observations that probably won’t make sense until you see it:

• Claire hasn’t seen enough slasher flicks. Or she’s seen too many. One or the other.


• One of the new heroes we meet has something a lot of characters on this show lack: personality. I’d even use the word feisty. Peter’s power sponge ability is the most interesting on the show because every new trick adds an interesting twist.


• Speaking of interesting twists, dabbling in religion is certainly a novel way to go. I wonder how or even whether that’ll be developed.


• Suresh is always fumbling around in the dark, firguratively speaking. Even when he seems to know what he’s doing, he’s still flying blind. Again, figuratively.


• Ever wonder how Sylar steals powers? Well, we can rule one way out.


• The whereabouts of three main characters are very clear and yet I still have no idea where each is.


• An old enemy thought long dead returns a seeming friend. And a friend thought recently dead looks alive but is somehow unfamiliar and unfriendly.


• There’s a new symbol this season, and it’s a doozy.

With a little snooping around, I was able to track down what appears to be a leaked version of the “Chuck” segment from that special more than two weeks before it officially airs.

Scroll a little more than halfway down this page on io9.com and search for the video that appears just under the phrase “And here’s the EPK for Chuck.” While there’s not much content that hadn’t already been revealed at Comic-Con, it’s still two minutes of rough-cut excellence. Just above that Electronic Press Kit are a couple of other promo videos unseen by this blogger. Same situation; previously released content re-edited for new commercials.

That i09.com post has a bunch of videos pertaining to fall sci-fi series, including “Knight Rider,” “Heroes” and “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” And another post from that science fiction fan site has spoilers for upcoming “Chuck” Webisodes. Perhaps the NBC powers that be were inspired by the Internet traffic generated by the Web-only mini-mini-miniseries for both “The Office” and “Heroes.”

According to io9, “The good news: Unlike the Heroes webisodes, they actually feature the regular cast of Chuck (but not Chuck himself, as far as I can tell.) The other good news: They’re actually pretty great.” Employees of Buy More—Morgan, Lester, Jeff and Casey—have been tabbed for the Webisodes, according to the site. Good times.

(Photo courtesy of NBC.com.)

Zachary Levi, who deftly plays the dramedy’s charmingly nerdy title character, will be hosting NBC’s prime-time preview special across the network’s broadcast and online platforms from Aug. 30 to Sept. 28. And in this blogger’s humble opinion, there couldn’t be a better choice.

With the proliferation of the Internet, cable networks and other entertainment sources in recent years, it’s no secret that networks these days have a short leash for new series that struggle to find large audiences. (See ABC’s “Emily’s Reasons Why Not”... because no one else did! Hiyo!) Back when “Seinfeld” struggled to find an audience for The Peacock, networks could exhibit more patience in the hope that word of mouth would not only keep a show afloat but, in time, deliver a ratings champion. But it’s no longer the ‘90s, and networks that fail to land quick hits often pull the plug, leaving audiences disappointed by premature cancellation and more wary than ever to dedicate the time to newer series.

Which brings us back to Levi, “Chuck,” the preview special and NBC’s classy gamble. In having Levi host the show, it’s essentially dedicating a half-hour of subliminal advertising to “Chuck,” which was on the bubble as far as second-season pickups were concerned. For its fall preview special a few years ago, NBC showed similar faith in handing over hosting duties to the stars of another show on the ropes: “The Office,” which since has become a critical darling and modest success in the Nielsens. Here’s hoping “Chuck” receives the same boost.

Of course, “The NBC Primetime Preview” will do more than offer “an exclusive backstage look” at new series like “My Own Worst Enemy” (starring Christian Slater), “Kath & Kim” (Molly Shannon and Selma Blair) and “Crusoe” (Philip Winchester and Sam Neill). It’ll also show off some teasers for returning series (“The Office,” “30 Rock,” “Heroes,” “Life,” et al.).

The special’s being offered to all of NBC’s broadcast and Internet affiliates and will even be shown on “selected United Airlines flights.” Chuck’s flown a helicopter, after all, so I suppose that works.

NBC’s premiere week officially kicks off Sept. 22.

(Photo courtesy of NBC.com.)

The first thing that struck me is that unlike The Office Webisodes, these are a lot like the real show. Yes, they suffer from the same time constraint that makes any kind of plot development or subtlety out of the question.

That said, you get all the elements of a new hero introduction that you would expect from the primetime series. They’re intense, a little suspenseful and right off the bat you identify with and feel for Echo, the mailman whose bark is worse than any dog’s bite.

And while the first installment opens with a seemingly cliched dog-chases-mailman opening, you do get the sense that Echo is decent. He doesn’t want to hurt the dog, even though it’s his cliched mortal enemy. But when The Company comes calling, he’s happy to unleash his pipes.

Does anyone else think the Constrictor looks like the lead singer from Midnight Oil? No? OK then.

Check out the videos and a plot breakdown after the jump. (And no Kristen Bell isn’t in the Webisodes, I just like that photo, courtesy of NBC Universal.)

Apparently the guy is a little more soundproof than the average human. He’s not above a little product integration though. Smooth the way he whips out that iPhone, calls in and puts a bullet into his dying partner all in one motion.

You’d think these Company teams would have learned a better way to approach the people they intend to abduct.

Anyway, by the second installment, Echo (Kiko Ellsworth) arrives home to warn his girl Gina (Rebeka Montoya). But Constrictor (Mark Steger) interrupts her romantic intentions.

In a standoff, Echo takes a chance and blows away Constrictor, and Gina is expectedly freaked out.

All in all, a pretty interesting—if not entirely Heroes-esque—little series they’ve got going here. If nothing else it reminds me amid this 10-month layoff, that the show even exists.

The idea is for the Webisodes to set things up to lead right into the third season premiere.

Up next on July 28 is “Let’s Talk.” Echo sends Gina off to safety while he confronts his enemies, but the tables turn with an unexpected twist.

Trailer: “Going Postal”

Episode 1: “A Nifty Trick”

Episode 2: “The House Guest”

Behind the scenes

I know, people tell me it’s amazing. I’m also fiercely intimidated by joining a complicated show so late in its run, which is why it took me so long to give “Deadwood” a try—and wow, I’m glad I did. But I’m also unmotivated to catch up on a series with season after season on DVD, especially when that honor is currently bestowed on “The Wire.” I just finished the fourth episode of Season 2, when Freamon looks 10 years younger than he does in Season 5 and Daniels is slowly working his way up the po-lice ladder. And it’s fantastic, obviously.

But there’s no disputing the powerful, almost cult-like fan base of “Lost.” One friend of mine only watches one show with any regularity and it’s “Lost.” And even people who feel like the show has lost its footing still watch it every week, much like fans of “The Sopranos” would complain that it would never live up to the quality of its first two seasons, but watched all the way through to the end for fear they’d miss something groundbreaking. (Insert joke about that series finale here.)

For a cliffhanger show like “Lost,” the stakes for season finales are much higher than, say, “30 Rock” (which I love, by the way). So when crazy things happened and new twists were revealed—can you tell I didn’t see it?—a heckuva lot of you (31 percent of voters) seemed to like what happened and voted accordingly in the latest Remote Access poll, deeming it the best season finale among fall series we regularly cover on this blog.

Placing second with 26 percent of the vote was “Jericho,” which filmed two endings and wound up using the one that worked more as a series finale.

Placing third (too low!) with 8 percent of the vote was the finale of “The Office,” which was by far the best episode of Season 4 and featured a command performance by “Wire” veteran Amy Ryan, as evidenced by this classic one-minute snippet when she endears herself to Michael and millions of “Office” fans:

Tied for fourth were the finales for “Heroes” and “House,” with 6 percent of the vote. Find out the rest of the results—and our latest poll—after the break.

Our next poll was suggested by fellow Accessory, Jenny Higgons, and it works nicely with the buzz surrounding the spin-off of “The Office” that’s in the works. What’s the best TV spinoff of all time? I’ve compiled some of the best ones she suggested as well as others listed in a related MSN article.

As usual, we’ve started with our list, but you’re more than welcome to add your own as long as they’re actual spin-offs. Scroll down the right margin and vote away!

(Photo courtesy of ABC)

PETA is holding its annual Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity contest, and here’s the stars from Remote Access shows who are in the running (sorry if I missed anyone!) — and you can vote for one woman and one man, so you can choose your favorite two:

The women

The men

30 Rock doesn’t return until Oct. 30, more than a month later, to make room for prime-time, election-editions of Saturday Night Live on Oct. 9, 16 and 23.

Other highlights include Heroes’s three-hour premiere (which includes an hour-long compilation show) Sept. 22, the Oct. 9 debut of Kath & Kim (9:30 p.m. ET) and the relaunch of Knight Rider Sept. 24 (8 p.m. ET). Entertainment chief Ben Silverman unveiled the lineup today.

Chuck returns (Thankfully!) Sept. 29 (8 p.m. ET) and leads into Christian Slater’s new show, My Own Worst Enemy 10 p.m. ET).

Kath & Kim,” starring Molly Shannon and Selma Blair, replaces Scrubs —which jumped to ABC—on Thursdays. Reality hit The Biggest Loser launches with a two-hour Families edition, filling the America’s Got Talent slot on Tuesdays.

America’s Toughest Jobs jumps its Summer 2009 scheduled debut with a two-hour episode on Sept. 12 (8 p.m. ET). Check local listings. Its schedule is zany. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (10 p.m. ET) starts its 10th season Sept. 23.

Knight Rider leads the Wednesdays lineup, followed by Lipstick Jungle. Unfortunately, Deal or No Deal returns eventually as well.

The Thursday night lineup starts, as usual with My Name Is Earl, premiering Sept. 25, at 8 p.m. ET. The Office follows at 9 p.m. ET. ER, oddly, isn’t dead yet but soon. Its 15th and final season starts Sept. 25 at 10 p.m. ET. Kath & Kim, starring Molly Shannon and Selma Blair slots in at 9:30 p.m. ET, right after 30 Rock.

Life is back, which is just wrong since Journeyman is the show they should have saved, on Friday, Oct. 3 (10 p.m. ET). Crusoe debuts Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. ET.

Premiere Schedule

Sept. 22
Heroes 8 p.m.

Sept. 23
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 10 p.m.

Sept. 24
Knight Rider
Lipstick Jungle 10 p.m.

Sept 25
My Name Is Earl – 8 p.m.
The Office – 9 p.m.
ER – 10-11 p.m.

Sept. 29
Chuck – 8 p.m.
My Own Worst Enemy – 10 p.m.

Oct. 3
Life – 10 p.m.

Oct. 9
Kath & Kim – 9:30.

Oct. 17
Crusoe – 8 p.m.

Oct. 30
30 Rock

New Series Descriptions:

Knight Rider—On the heels of NBC’s hit movie, the iconic 1980s television classic comes roaring back to life as a reinvented, updated and super-charged action series showcasing the new KITT (Knight Industries Three Thousand). Absolutely the coolest car ever created, KITT is equipped with “AI” (artificial intelligence) that is capable of hacking almost any system. Its weapons systems matches that of a jet fighter, and its body is capable of actually transforming into other vehicles and uses sophisticated holographic imagery to elude villains. “Knight Rider” stars Justin Bruening, Deanna Russo, Sydney Tamiia Poitier and Bruce Davison. David Bartis, Doug Liman and Gary Scott Thompson are executive producers.

Crusoe—An epic and ambitious take on Daniel Defoe’s legendary tale that finds the dashing and resourceful Crusoe after many years of being a castaway on a desert island with his companion Friday. Written by Stephen Gallagher and directed by Duane Clark, Crusoe follows the adventures of the two island dwellers while looking in flashback at Crusoe’s life before he was thrown into an isolated existence filled with danger and adventure. Among those are his tragic childhood with widower father James (Sean Bean), the blossoming relationship with the love of his life, Susannah (Anna Walton) and his entrepreneurial aspirations under the watchful eye of family friend, Jeremiah Blackthorn (Sam Neill). Overcoming marauding militias, hungry cannibals, wild cats, starvation and apocalyptic lightning storms on his seemingly idyllic island, Crusoe dreams of the day he will be reunited with his beloved family.

Kath & Kim—They’re the most dysfunctional duo in suburbia. Kath Day (Molly Shannon) is the mom, a foxy, 40-something divorcée who finally has time for herself and her valiant search for love. Kim Day (Selma Blair) is the daughter, a self-absorbed princess recently separated from her husband who finds consolation in stuffing her face. When Kim decides to move back home, Kath reluctantly agrees—but to Kim’s chagrin, Kath is not about to cater to her every whim as she has in the past. Based on the most successful comedy in Australia of the same name, Kath and Kim are two brassy women who prefer the finer things in life like acrylic nails, big hair and faux diamond chips.

America’s Toughest Jobs—A new extreme competition series that will test 12 people who venture out of their safe, comfortable careers and are injected into some of the most challenging, dangerous and demanding jobs on earth. From logging high in the Oregon Forest to oil drilling on the Texas range, or from driving icy roads to extreme fishing—each job requires guts and stamina, and they’ll have to live up to the same standards as the pros. In the end, their new boss and co-workers will determine success or failure, and those who don’t make the grade get sent home. Upping the ante, the annual salary of each job will be thrown into the pot until the finale, where one rookie will take home the well-earned cash.

Check out this promo. I’m pretty sure if you look close you’ll see Peter labeled a villain. It can only make him more likable.

Filming for the fall begins next Friday and, to TV Guide, the Intersect and his buddies will return to TV for 13 consecutive new episodes this fall. Nice.

Zachary Levi revealed the date to resume filming to TV Guide, but not much else about Season 2. “I have a huge mouth, so if they tell me anything, we’re screwed,” he told a TV guide reporter.

“Heroes” is expected to receive the same treatment of 13 straight new eps this fall, according to the mag.

Now, I know I’ve been critical of NBC for deciding to wait until the fall to bring the show back while allowing more established comedies (“The Office” and “30 Rock,” for example) to return for a mini-season shortly after the conclusion of the writers’ strike. But while “The Office” and “30 Rock” are critical darlings that have devout, passionate and may I say extremely intelligent fans, post-strike ratings for those shows went from strong to wrong once “Grey’s Anatomy” and “CSI” returned with new episodes. “The Office” dropped 21 percent from its season high (earned May 1) while “30 Rock” posted its “lowest-rated episode this season,” according to Entertainment Weekly. Blerg.

Perhaps the NBC execs had a point when they decided to wait a bit; “Chuck’s” ratings were slowly building an audience and collected some momentum in the fall. Bringing it back too soon only to cut it short again for summer break might have crippled any chance for the show to build or even retain its humble ratings, meaning all but certain cancelation.

What should we expect for Chuck version season 2.0? And will “Chuck” fans ever see an appearance by Natalie Martinez, who may or may not have been tabbed to play Chuck’s steady girlfriend, thus completing a love triangle with him and Sarah? Plus more teasers, minor spoilers and photos await for “Chuck” fanatics after the break.

TV Guide has lots of great candid and posed stills of the “Chuck” gang in action, some of which are posted below. But I was floored when I found a photo of a gorgeous actress by the name of Natalie Martinez, who reportedly plays “Kayla,” a character I don’t remember seeing but is in one of the show’s earliest promo photos. At the Paley Fest ‘08 convention in March, co-creator Josh Schwartz said he initially considered having Chuck torn about choosing between Sarah (played by Yvonne Strahovski) and an existing girlfriend, according to TV Guide. Could Kayla have been that girlfriend before the change was made? Hmmm.

Here’s looking at what could have been, namely Ms. Martinez:

In the same must-read TV Guide article that references abandoned plans for an existing Chuck girlfriend, Schwartz said he’d love to land Jean-Claude Van Damme to appear as a villain on the show. What’s not to like about that idea? It’d be a great comeback for him (by default) and the show would could land some buzz similar to Britney Spears’ appearance(s) on “How I Met Your Mother.”

TV Guide’s correspondent also gauged the amount of applause each guest received at Paley Fest. Even with Sarah Lancaster (Ellie) out, the results were no surprise to me as a devout “Chuck” fan:

Applause meter: No contest — Baldwin won by a landslide. Levi came in second, followed by (Joshua) Gomez and Strahovski.

(Chuck/Sarah photo by Carin Baer for NBC/Universal; Natalie Martinez photo courtesy of Chris Haston/NBC; Sarah’s Weinerlicious uniform photo courtesy of Mitch Haddad/NBC Photo.)

90. Summer Glau (Cameron, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles)
83. Jenna Fischer (Pam, The Office)
73. Carrie Underwood (American Idol)
63. Grace Park (The Eights/Sharons, Battlestar Galactica)
49. Katherine Heigl (Dr. Isobel ‘Izzie’ Stevens, Grey’s Anatomy)
41. Kristin Kreuk (Lana Lang, Smallville)
38. Katherine McPhee (American Idol)
37. Evangeline Lilly (Kate, Lost)
24. Kristen Bell (Elle, Heroes)
19. Ali Larter (Niki Sanders & Co., Heroes)
15. Erica Durance (Lois Lane, Smallville)
11. Hayden Panettiere (Claire Bennett, Heroes)
9. Blake Lively (Serena van der Woodsen, Gossip Girl)
8. Tricia Helfer (The Sixes, Battlestar Galactica)
4. Elisha Cuthbert (Kim Bauer, 24)

That’s more than 10 percent of the list accounted for. Hey! Where’s the 100 sexiest men of 2008?? (And isn’t April/May kind of early in the year for this sort of listing?)

After a tie of 171 votes apiece, Fischer broke away from Beyer and claimed the honor. She finished with 222 votes; Beyer claimed 203. (Photo of Jenna Fischer courtesy of NBC/Universal.)

Like last week’s results, actors from their shows also filled the poll’s next two slots: Rainn Wilson (92 votes), Dwight on “The Office,” and reader-submitted Skeet Ulrich (73 votes), Jake on “Jericho.” (I’d still contend that Ulrich is a lead actor, but it’s an interesting poll trend regardless.)

Rounding out the top 10 were Michael Emerson as Ben on “Lost” (43 votes); Robert Sean Leonard as Wilson on “House, M.D.” (36 votes); Tricia Helfer as Number Six on “Battlestar Galactica” (32 votes); Summer Glau as Cameron on “Terminator: The Sarah Conor Chronicles” (25 votes); Masi Oka as Hiro on “Heroes” (18 votes); and Allison Mack as Chloe on “Smallville” (17 votes).

Our new poll, in the right margin of this page, is all about elbow grease: Who is the hardest-working TV personality? We’ve even given you a few suggestions to get you started.

From “Lost” to “Cloverfield,” it seems like JJ Abrams is everywhere these days. “Daily Show” alumnus Steve Carell rocks “The Office” and is an A- or B-list movie star at this point. “Saturday Night Live” alumna Tina Fey is the MVP writer/producer/star of “30 Rock” and also has movie cred with “Mean Girls” and “Baby Mama.” Ryan Seacrest hosts “American Idol,” the Emmys, “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” his own radio show, E! newscasts, “American Top 40” and pretty much everything that needs an emcee. And Oprah Winfrey’s talk show continues to rule and her presence extends into prime time, politics and international charity work.

As we like to do here at Remote Access, we’re giving you the option to submit your own nominations as well. So feel free to do so. Remember: We’re looking for people who got their start and/or are best known for their contribution to television. Movie stars making a TV cameo now and then shouldn’t count. Vote, vote, vote!

Check out the rest of the results of the supporting actor poll after the break.

This unrelated photo of Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), courtesy NBC Universal, is from the April 24 episode “Night Out”. It’s my blog and I felt like including it. So there.

Well now NBC is announcing that Heroes and Chuck are slated for their own series of online shorts come July. Additional chapters of Webisodes for each show will roll out throughout the season, the network says. The Office Webisodes, dubbed “The Accountants” won an onlin Emmy for the 10-installment saga of a missing $3,000.
In less exciting news, 30 Rock 360 will launch, bringing the same kind of zany fun (i.e. excruciatingly un-fun) that we’ve already seen for The Office and Heroes.

I was skeptical of The Office 360 when I first heard about it a year ago, and Dunder Mifflin Infinity, as it became to be known, fell short of even my lowest expectations. In this case you might be thinking, “It’s 30 Rock-related. How could it not be fun?” I thought the same thing about The Office and was painfully wrong.

I have to admit, though, I’m intrigued when I read that 30 Rock 360 “will include faux online business courses taught by Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin), as well as Jack’s blog.” (Actually, how could that not be funny?)

Other challenges will include submitting skits for “TGS with Tracy Jordan”, responding to the “Ask Tina” blog and guided tours of workplaces (in response to Kenneth the Page’s tours).

And while it’s not quite “360”, Chuck fans will be able to go online and join Buy More, take Big Mike’s Management Lessons and see inside the Nerd Herd “Help Desk”. They can also look at the villains photo gallery and check out the Buy More Music Section featuring music from the show. That sounds kind of cool, actually.

Heroes 360 will expand with webisodes, online manhunts for villains, and more micro sites to allow users to “uncover more of the Heroes universe, wireless iTV interactivity and the ability to view the graphic novel on mobile platforms.”

Heroes’s fall return is a long way off, but I’m still intrigued by at least some of the snippets of spoilery info that trickle out onto the Interwebs from time to time.

For starters, SyFyPortal reports that Kenzei will rise from the grave. It was sheer genius for Hiro to plant his friend-turned-nemesis six feet under just as the erstwhile Adam was about to unleash a plague upon humanity. It seemed potentially permanent at the time, but I kept thinking that if he isn’t dead he’s still a threat.

“I believe so, yeah. I hope so. I know I’m going to be in one of the first six so…”  (actor David) Anders told SyFy Portal’s Alan Stanley Blair at (the mid-March) Eclipse event in the United Kingdom. “But after that, it’s called ‘Villains,’ and I am an uber-villain.”

Helping round out the “Villains” story arc that was bumped from mid-Season 2 until the fall is Christine Rose, a.k.a Angela Petrelli. She’s got an awesome power, in the literal sense of the word, but she’s not spilling what it is.

Talking to SyFyPortal at the same event, she said…

“I just decided Nathan was my son with (Linderman) [Malcolm McDowell], and Milo from Arthur (Petrelli). We all met at Woodstock, done acid and became heroes. Hiro is my child with Kaito cause I think there is something there.”

In tenuously related news, Milo Ventimiglia (who plays Peter Petrelli) has a YouTube page under the name Russ181. I just spent some time there checking out the videos and I can honestly say I do not know what’s going on there. His company’s MySpace page doesn’t clear a whole lot up either.

And in even less interesting Heroes news—boy it is a slow news month for this show—the two annoying kids on the show won an award for being child actors.

Photo: NBC Universal

But what was missing?

Jericho.

Now, I know that not everyone considers Jericho to be science fiction. But most sci-fi fans do consider it to be, at least. Sci-fi websites cover Jericho and it’s a post-apocalyptic drama; seems to fit the category, at least loosely. How is it less so than, say, Pushing Daisies? Or Shrek the Halls??

As much as I appreciate most of the noms listed below (but Battlestar Galactica totally should have gotten more nominations, as much as I love Lost!), Jericho should have gotten some Saturn love.

And the (television) nominees are (for a full list, go here):

Best Network Television Series
Heroes (NBC)
Lost (ABC)
Pushing Daisies (ABC)
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox)
Journeyman (NBC)
Supernatural (The CW)

Best Syndicated / Cable Television Series
Dexter (Showtime)
Battlestar Galactica (Sci Fi Channel)
Stargate SG-1 (Sci Fi Channel / MGM)
The Closer (TNT)
Kyle XY (ABC Family)
Saving Grace (TNT)

Best Presentation on Television
Battlestar Galactica: Razor (Sci Fi Channel)
The Company (TNT)
Fallen (ABC Family)
The Family Guy: “Blue Harvest” (Fox)
Masters of Science Fiction (ABC)
Shrek the Halls (ABC)
Tin Man (Sci Fi Channel)

Best International Series
Doctor Who (Sci Fi Channel)
Torchwood (BBC America)
Meadowlands (aka Cape Wrath) (Showtime)
Jekyll (BBC America)
Life On Mars (BBC America)
Robin Hood (BBC America)

Best Actor on Television
Matt Dallas (Kyle XY) (ABC Family)
Matthew Fox (Lost) (ABC)
Michael C. Hall (Dexter) (Showtime)
Kevin McKidd (Journeyman) (NBC)
Edward James Olmos (Battlestar Galactica) (Sci Fi Channel)
Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) (ABC)

Best Actress on Television
Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies) (ABC)
Lena Headey (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) (Fox)
Jennifer Love Hewitt (Ghost Whisperer) (CBS)
Holly Hunter (Saving Grace) (TNT)
Evangeline Lily (Lost) (ABC)
Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer) (TNT)

Best Supporting Actor on Television
Michael Emerson (Lost) (ABC)
Greg Grunberg (Heroes) (NBC)
Josh Holloway (Lost) (ABC)
Erik King (Dexter) (Showtime)
Terry O’Quinn (Lost) (ABC)
Masi Oka (Heroes) (NBC)

Best Supporting Actress on Television
Jaime Alexander (Kyle XY) (ABC Family)
Jennifer Carpenter (Dexter) (Showtime)
Summer Glau (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) (Fox)
Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost) (ABC)
Jaime Murray (Dexter) (Showtime)
Hayden Panettiere (Heroes) (NBC)

Best Television Series on DVD
Eureka (Season 1) (Universal)
Heroes (Season 1) (Universal)
Hustle (Complete Seasons 2 and 3) (BBC Warner)
Lost (The Complete Third Season) (Buena Vista)
MI:5 (Volumes 4 & 5) (BBC Warner)
Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series (BBC Warner)

Best Retro Television Series on DVD
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones (Volume 1: The Early Years) (Paramount)
Count Dracula (BBC Mini-series 1977) (BBC Warner)
Land of the Giants (The Full Series) (Fox)
Mission Impossible (The Second and Third Seasons) (Paramount)
Twin Peaks (The Definitive Gold Box Edition) (Paramount)
The Wild Wild West (The Second and Third Seasons) (Paramount)

Remember that scene in Spaceballs when they find Yogurt and he tells them the secret to the Schwartz? “Moichandizing!” the glittery Mel Brooks declares.

So you had Spaceballs the hat. Spaceballs the action figure. And of course Spaceballs the flamethrower.

Well that’s what I was reminded of when I read a recent press release from NBC Universal about the forthcoming release of Heroes the soundtrack.

Bob Dylan and Iggy Pop recorded tunes alongside such perennial music icons as Nada Surf (Who?), Panic! At The Disco, Wilco and The Jesus & Mary Chain (their first recording since the 1990s. Who knew?).

The disc hits stores, electronic and brick, March 18.

(By the way, it’s being released by NBC Universal Television, DVD, Music & Consumer Products Group. That reminds me of Jack Donaghy, vice president of Television and Microwave Programming.)

It’s exec produced by Errol Kolosine (“Six Feet Under”) in collaboration with showrunner Tim Kring and Heroes exec producer & director Allan Arkush.

“For a long time music and comic dork like myself, this project has been a dream come true,” Kolosine said.

Other artists featured include Wendy & Lisa with the Heroes theme song (What theme song?), Death Cab For Cutie and My Morning Jacket. There’s even a title track from David Bowie, who I thought I’d hear first on the Flight of the Conchords’ next album.Five music video podcasts will be available for free download on Zune Marketplace, which I guess is a counterpart to the iTunes music store, though you’d have to be one of the 27 people who bought a Zune to know that.

The album is going to be sold at Best Buy and “other digital service providers,” says NBC. They can’t even mention iTunes by name? Those two are never getting back together, are they?

Here’s the complete track listing, courtesy NBC Universal…

1. Heroes Title – Wendy & Lisa


2. Fire and Regeneration – Wendy & Lisa (*new release)


3. He’s Frank – Brighton Port Authority featuring Iggy Pop (*new release)


4. All For Swinging You Around – New Pornographers


5. Glad It’s Over – Wilco (*new release)


6. Weightless – Nada Surf (new release)


7. Nine In The Afternoon – Panic! At The Disco (new release)


8. Chills – My Morning Jacket (*new release)


9. Natural Selection – Wendy & Lisa


10. ABoneCroneDrone 3 – Shelia Chandra


11. Not Now But Soon – Imogen Heap (*new release)


12. Jealously Rides With Me – Death Cab For Cutie (*new U.S. release)


13. All Things Must Pass – The Jesus and Mary Chain (*new release)


14. Homecoming – Wendy & Lisa


15. Man In The Long Black Coat – Bob Dylan


16. Maya’s Theme – Yerba Buena (*new release)


17. Keeping My Composure – The Chemical Brothers featuring Spank Rock (*new release)


18. Heroes – David Bowie

*Denotes an exclusive new release on the “Heroes” soundtrack album.

Meandering about the interwebs for tidbits on Heroes’ immediate future has turned up some interesting observations and speculation on what’s to come.

Sounds like we can expect to see less Kristen Bell (which would be a shame) but not too much less (phew!). And there should be more Heroes overall, which is cool.

TVGuide.com’s Michael Ausiello, not surprisingly, is the source for much of the recent scoop. In one recent Ask Ausiello column he hints that Bell, who only signed on for a limited run as bad girl Elle during this interrupted season, will be back in the fall. But Ausiello also hints that we should “scale back” our expectations.

A week earlier, actually, he was much more direct about the question.

...Kristen Bell is not — I repeat, not — signed on for next season. But (and this is a big “but,” so listen up) sources confirm that Heroes is in active discussions with her to return for an arc during Season 3. And considering how much everyone at the show worships her — and she them — I have every reason to believe that this will happen.

And lastly he had this to offer…

Let’s just say that over the next few months the show’s casting offices will be filled with actors who are very good at being very bad.

“I’ve had an unbelievable experience thus far and they seem to like me and want to keep me onboard, so we’re going to keep that ball rolling for as long as we can. I think we fell in love. Just try and separate us!”

And while it’s neither here nor there, the mag also carried an item about Bell getting into a bit of a fender bender. This is no Lohanesque cautionary tale, mind you.

Driving a Saturn SUV hybrid (naturally), she reportedly struck another vehicle and broke an axle. But no one was hurt, and LAPD did not get involved, which makes you wonderwhy TMZ reported it in the first place.

In other Heroes news, SciFi Wire caught up with James Kyson Lee, who plays Hiro’s sidekick Ando at the recent WonderCon in SanFrancisco.

Lee, who was stumping for “Shutter”, his new horror flick, confirmed the spring shooting start for next season and was enthusiastic about the “Villains” story arc that was all set up when Season 2 was cut short.

But for Lee personally, he’s eager to work again with Masi Oka, who plays fan favorite Hiro Nakamura. “I know people are excited that Ando and Hiro are back together after their little stint away [in] different timelines,” Lee said. “I think more adventures and mayhem ensue for us.”

Apparently Hiro was going to transport Yaeko to the present in episodes that hadn’t yet been shot when the writers strike began. Tamura confirmed she’ll be back, though she said nothing was set as far as storylines.

In other news, Ali Larter may or may not be back as either Nikki or Jessica—depending on where she was when that building exploded—but she will enjoy big-screen time opposite Beyoncé Knowles..

Variety.com reports the pair are slated to start shooting Obsessed, a thriller in which Larter is just that for Knowles’s man, this summer. Knowles and her father, Matthew Knowle, will produce.

That’s totally cool with me. I understand the show is costly and time-consuming to produce. Any effort to rush out a handful of new episodes this spring would likely result in sub-par results to little purpose. I wasn’t as harsh a critic of the recent season as some (though Alejandro and Maya certainly tried my patience), but I’ll be the first to admit a little time and a creative reboot couldn’t hurt.

Well, after perusing a recent BuddyTV report on what’s to come when the “Villians” story arc finally gets under way, I’m feeling confident it’ll be worth the wait.

The info is based on footage Kring and writer Jeph Loeb screened at the Jules Verne Adventures Festival back in December in L.A.

Spoilers follow…

According to the report, Elle (Kristen Bell) runs into Sylar (Zachary Quinto) and hints that she can be just as scary as him. Also, Mama Petrelli (Christine Rose) steps up within The Company, while the lockup where the most dangerous killer heroes are kept is breached.

Also, at some point all the main heroes are dead and there are something like 12 Sylars on the loose. I have to think that’s a glimpse of some kind of alternate future along the lines of New York after the bomb. And it sounds like Ali Larter will be back, though Niki won’t, and Adam (David Anders) finds a way out of that grave.

Good stuff, right?

While I’m on the subject of Heroes, I remarked recently that I didn’t totally disagree when former bit player Thomas Dekker, now starring in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, called the relationship between Milo Ventimiglia and Hayden Planetarium (not her real name, but funnier and easier to spell) creepy.

But I do take issue with his decision to comment at all. Bad taste, my friend.

Well Ventimiglia doesn’t quite fire back, but he does address the issue, which apparently has been drawing some attention from people who pay attention to such things.

When you’re in the public eye, you try to keep whatever you can private,â€? he tells the March GQ. “People can speculate and talk. But what can you do—stop living your life?

NBC also recently announced it had picked up the American series adaptation of the popular Australian comedy, Kath & Kim. The American version would star Molly Shannon as Kath, “a cheerful, forty-something divorcee,” and Selma Blair as Kim, “her self-absorbed daughter.”

Speaking of, NBC and CBS also announced when several other shows would come back.

First, NBC.

• Medium (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. ET) — Continues current run

• My Name Is Earl (Thursdays, 8-8:30 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 3 with one-hour episode

• 30 Rock (Thursdays, 8:30-9 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 10

• The Office (Thursdays, 9-9:30 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 10

• Scrubs (Thursdays, 9:30-10 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 10

• ER (Thursdays, 10-11 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 10

• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Tuesdays, 10-11 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 15

• Law & Order (Wednesdays, 10-11 p.m. ET) — Resumes April 23

Then, CBS also had some announcements:

• How I Met Your Mother, returns March 17, 9 new episodes expected

• The Big Bang Theory, March 17, 9 new episodes
• Two and a Half Men, March 17, 9 new episodes

• CSI: Miami, March 24, 8 new episodes

• Cold Case, March 30, 5 new episodes

• Criminal Minds, April 2, 7 new episodes

• CSI: New York, April 2, 7 new episodes

• CSI, April 3, 6 new episodes

• Without a Trace, April 3, 6 new episodes

• Ghost Whisperer, April 4, 6 new episodes

• Numb3rs, April 4, 6 new episodes

• NCIS, April 8, 7 new episodes

• Moonlight, April 11, 4 new episodes

• Rules of Engagement, April 14, 6 new episodes

• Shark, TBA, 4 new episodes

CBS pointed out that The Unit, Cane and Shark are on hiatus to accommodate the midseason Big Brother, Jericho and Dexter runs. And Swingtown still hasn’t been scheduled, but will resume production.

Other new episode tidbits out there:

Check out TVGuide’s post-strike chart. And Ausiello had some good news for me: Reaper is expected to shoot 5 or 6 additional episodes to air in April or May. And Supernatural is definitely getting new episodes, too.

“The Office,” “30 Rock,” “Gossip Girl,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Desperate Housewives” and more will likely be able to churn out a handful of new episodes by April.

But others—mostly newbies like “Dirty Sexy Money,” “Pushing Daisies” and “Chuck”—  probably won’t be back until the fall.

Then there’s “24,” which won’t return until January 2009, returning to the show’s standard winter premiere strategy—but leaving fans without their Jack Bauer fix for nearly TWO years.

As for serialized dramas like “Heroes” and “Lost,” the decision is a bit more difficult.

Networks and producers are trying to figure out if it’s worth the trouble to produce just a few episodes for the rest of this season, leaving viewers hanging in the middle of convoluted storylines until September.

“Lost” exec producer Damon Lindelof seems to think the island drama can crank out more than the 8 episodes we’ve been promised this season—but then again, it’s all up to ABC as to when they’d air.

E!’s Kristin Dos Santos got the scoop from show runners for some of Remote Access’ faves, including all of the above mentioned shows.  Check it out here!

(Photos courtesy of ABC, FOX and NBC) 

I’m new to The Wire, but that seems unlikely. And yet it’s true.

Jamie Hector, who plays the ruthless but impressively ambitious and efficient young Baltimore drug kingpin Marlo Stanfield, will join the Heroes cast when the show returns next season. New York Magazine reveals that he has already shot a couple of episodes, which have been on ice during the writers strike.

Hector, who appeared in Spike Lee’s 1995 Clockers, plays the role of Benjamin Knox Washington. And that’s about all the detail he was willing to share.

What else do you need to know? Marlo is 145 times scarier than Sylar ever was.

Some pairing

I thought it was pretty creepy when romance seemed to be brewing between Claire Bennett and Peter Petrelli midway through season one of Heroes. Later, when it was revealed they were uncle and niece, I was relieved that potential storyline had been chucked.

But when Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia were snapped at a pro hockey game last month, we were back to creepy territory again. I’m willing to admit, though, that I can’t say for sure why. He’s 30 and she’s 18. Normally I’d say that’s not good. But considering that they are high profile celebrities who don’t live anything approximating real lives, is it really terrible?

The future leader of the human resistance against the army of homocidal machines thinks so.

Thomas Dekker, the brooding, emo-ish young actor who made a controversial departure from a role on Heroes as Claire’s gay best friend, called the Milo-Hayden pairing (Haylo? Miden?) “gross” in an interview with Life & Style magazine.

It’s kind of like if I were dating a 12-year-old.

The Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles co-star is 20. Lena Headey, the knockout Brit actress from the movie 300 who plays his mother on the show, is 35. Let’s hope he sticks to his stance on May-December romances.

See you next year?

Speaking of Heroes, which I kind of was, TVGuide.com’s Michael Ausiello is bearish on the show’s return this season.

Question: What are the odds that we’ll see more Heroes episodes this season? — Dabney

Ausiello: Slim to none. Due to the heavily serialized nature of the show, it’s unlikely that Heroes will be back this season. Instead, NBC will likely go straight into production on Season 3.

(Photos: Jamie Hector – HBO; Panettiere and Ventimiglia – AP/Danny Moloshok; Thomas Dekker – Fox Programming)

No one’s going to blame you later for what you did to survive the writers strike. But hopefully you didn’t sully your TV-absorbing brain cells with too much of the written word. And hopefully you discovered TV-friendly options, like the original Heroes tome, “Saving Charlie” (which I first mentioned here). I didn’t get that desperate, so I can’t tell you if it was worth the $24 you had to plunk down for Aury Wallington’s take on the backstory between Hiro and Charlie at the Burnt Toast Diner.

But this mom of twins read it, and she offers her take.

“Saving Charlie� is a sweet tale of the budding romance between Hiro and Charlie, the friendly waitress at the Burnt Toast Diner that has a knack for learning and retaining information with ease. But as the plaque in Hiro’s dad’s office says in Chapter 5, “This is not a Fairy Tale.�

The show’s writers had set up such a wonderful character in Charlie, and because she isn’t recurring on the show, I had a lot more freedom to invent the details of her life and past without worrying about how those details would affect later episodes of the show. All the questions Charlie’s character had raised in my mind–how did she get the blood clot in her brain, when did she discover her memory power, why was she so obsessed with taking a trip around the world, what was it about Hiro that let her fall in love for the very first time–I got to come up with the answers to those questions that I liked best. I hope they’re answers that will satisfy the readers too!

That sounds to me like a generic premise, but the movie should sink or swim based on the script and casting. It has a 2009 release date.

So here’s several news items that have come to light in the past week or so:

• The SciFi Channel has ordered a 13-episode season of a new scripted drama that will be 90 percent CGI, as far as the sets are concerned, in the style of 300 and Sin City. Amanda Tapping, late of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, stars as Dr. Helen Magnus, and Robin Dunne, who once upon a time was on Dawson’s Creek, plays her protoge, Will Zimmerman. They “are on a quest to track down, aid and protect all manner of strange creatures that walk the earth.  The show started out as an Internet-based high-def series. Tapping will, however, still make guest appearances on Atlantis in its next season.

• Now, I have no clue what companies offer this channel, because Cablevision sure as heck doesn’t, but Chiller will be running episodes of Profit (Adrian Pasdar of Heroes starred) and Millennium (Lost’s Terry O’Quinn, The Shield’s CCH Pounder and Lance Henriksen starred; the folks behind The X-Files were behind it)). Millennium starts on Monday and will air at 7 p.m. and 3 a.m., M-F. Profit will start Thursday, airing at 8 p.m., 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. The schedule is a little confusing for it; the first three episodes will air back-to-back on Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., from 4 to 7 p.m. and midnight to 3 a.m., “followed by never-before-aired episodes in weeks to come.”

• Entertainment Weekly recently named the sexiest aliens. First on the list? The Cylon trifecta of Tricia Helfer (Number Six), Grace Park (Sharon Valerii) and Lucy Lawless (D’Anna Biers). I’m shocked, shocked I tell you! Also shocking entries on the list: Jeri Ryan (Star Trek Voyager’s Seven of Nine), Milla Jovovich (Leeloo from The Fifth Element), Terry Farrell (Jadzia Dax from Star Trek DS9). Then some odd ones, such as Jeff Bridges from Starman.

• Down in Fraggle Rock! Yay! Fraggle Rock and Farscape, along with other Jim Henson Company TV and feature film work are available for download on Apple’s iTunes store, SCI FI Wire reported. I loooved Fraggle Rockk as a kid, in HBO’s early days. Is it possible the Fraggles celebrate their 25th anniversary this year?? Yikes. The shows will be available for $1.99 an episode.

• ABC Family is picking up a few series, The Hollywood Reporter reported. (It’s totally goofy, but I love saying the “Reporter reported.”) Roomies and The Middleman. In the latter, Natalie Morales will star as “a twentysomething struggling artist recruited by a secret agency to fight comic book-type villains” and Matt Keeslar plays the Middleman himself, “a sci-fi superhero who serves as her guide.” Six episodes were ordered. Roomies, shockingly, is about a group of friends who are roommates.