May 23, 2005 |
Summer Cable's Sizzling Twists
Six Feet Under (HBO, Mondays, 9pm/ET; returns May 6)
Where we left off: After discovering that his wife, Lisa, had been murdered by her brother-in-law, Nate proposed to girlfriend Brenda.
Coming soon: Brenda and Nate (Rachel Griffiths and Peter Krause) are now married and expecting a baby. David (Michael C. Hall) and Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) ponder adoption. Queer as Folk
(Showtime, Sundays, 10pm/ET; returns May 22)
Where we left off: Last season Michael (Hal Sparks) and Ben (Robert Gant) got married, Brian (Gale Harold) battled cancer and Justin (Randy Harrison) headed for Hollywood. In last week's season premiere, Brian bought the Babylon club and baby Jenny Rebecca's three parents fought over custody.
Coming soon: Rosie O'Donnell plays an abused wife who replaces Debbie (Sharon Gless) at the diner, chubby Ted (Scott Lowell) undergoes an extreme makeover and Brian's reign as Pittsburgh's top hunk is threatened by a new stud. In its final season, look for breakups, reconciliations, an unexpected marriage, a bombing and the geographical breakup of the Liberty Avenue gang. The 4400
(USA Network, Sundays, 9pm/ET; returns June 5)
Where we left off: The 4400 missing people were revealed to have been taken by humans from the distant future and returned with special powers needed for an impending catastrophe.
Coming soon: The formidable Nina Jarvis (Samantha Ferris) takes over the Homeland Security unit. For better or worse, Lily (Laura Allen) has her baby. Shawn (Patrick Flueger) gets close to Collier (Billy Campbell), who has written a tell-all book about being one of the 4400. Agent Skouris (Jacqueline McKenzie) adopts returnee Maia (Conchita Campbell) and deals with her visiting sister (Natasha Wagner). Sharif Atkins and Robert Picardo show up as 4400 members in a season that brings religion, politics and a growing evil force. Strong Medicine
(Lifetime, Sundays, 9pm/ET; returns June 12)
Where we left off: Jonas (Nestor Carbonell) proposed to Lu (Rosa Blasi) and she accepted. Andy (Patricia Richardson, who left the show) defended herself in the Senate and was appointed surgeon general.
Coming soon: Lu gets a new partner when Rick Schroder joins the cast as brash, button-pushing Dylan West. He's a specialist in women's health issues but has ulterior reasons for taking the job at Rittenhouse. Lu, devoted to her work in the inner city, will struggle with the idea of marrying a multimillionaire. Rescue Me
(FX, Tuesdays, 10pm/ET; returns June 21)
Where we left off: Off-the-wagon alcoholic Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) suffered an emotional one-two punch: His fellow firefighters beat him up for sleeping with a fallen comrade's widow, and his ex-wife split town with their kids in tow.
Coming soon: A major shock occurs in the season premiere's first 10 minutes. Meanwhile, Tommy gets transferred to a sleepy Staten Island firehouse, tries to sober up and may eventually reunite with his ex. Monk
(USA Network, Fridays, 10pm/ET; returns July 8)
Where we left off: Germaphobic detective Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) was getting closer to his new assistant Natalie (Traylor Howard), whose life he saved.
Coming soon: John Turturro returns as Monk's agoraphobic brother, Ambrose. Monk's murdered wife, Trudy (Melora Hardin), seems to return from the dead. |
Trek Star Fires off Parting Shots
Star Trek: Enterprise is now history, but it wasn't the only thing that died the night of May 13. Cmdr. Trip Tucker, one of the UPN show's most popular characters, set off an explosion in the series finale that was meant to kill evil aliens, but he wound up killing himself as well. "At first I was shocked and a little miffed at the choice that was made," says Connor Trinneer, who played Trip. "But, selfishly, things worked out for me. I'm the only one who went out with a bang... no pun intended. I got the goodbye no one else did." Most of the Enterprise regulars were cheated out of airtime to make room for juicy, highly hyped guest stints by Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis of Star Trek: The Next Generation. "I wanted us all to have the big M*A*S*H moment — the really memorable farewell," Trinneer says. "Sadly, it just didn't happen. That's not where the writers and producers wanted to focus." The deadly plot twist has no doubt added insult to the injury Trekkers already feel due to the show's demise. But if it's any consolation, Trip would have been killed even if Enterprise hadn't ended. "That episode was already written when we got the call that we were canceled," says the show's creator and executive producer, Rick Berman. "If we hadn't gotten the ax, it still would have been our season finale." Berman reminds us that the episode took a six-year leap in time, so Trip wouldn't have really died for several more seasons. "And, even then, death isn't always permanent," Trinneer says with a laugh. "Spock died in one Star Trek movie and was resurrected in the next. We're talking sci-fi here — anything can happen!" |
Daytime TV Says Goodbye to Guru
The world of daytime drama has lost its lion king. William J. Bell, the groundbreaking, taboo-busting mastermind behind CBS' The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, died April 29 from complications of Alzheimer's disease. He was 78. Bell cocreated both shows with his wife, Lee Phillip Bell, and is credited with writing and producing some 15,000 soap episodes in a four-decade career. His slow, hypnotic storytelling style was rooted in romance and family, but Bell also embraced controversy with landmark plots about crack babies, AIDS, incest, date rape, euthanasia and homelessness. Bell was just as audacious off camera: He was a tough and supremely confident showman who paid no mind to focus-group research and tolerated no interference from the CBS "suits." In exchange for that autonomy, he gave the network two wildly popular cash cows: Y&R, now in its 32nd year, has been the No. 1 soap since 1988. The 18-year-old B&B usually ranks No. 2. Bell also made magic at NBC, where he cocreated Another World with his mentor, Irna Phillips. It ran for 35 years. In addition to his wife of 50 years, Bell leaves behind a suds dynasty. Daughter Lauralee plays Christine on Y&R; eldest son Bill Jr. heads the family's production company, Bell-Phillip Television; and youngest son Brad is the head writer and executive producer of B&B. Brad tells TV Guide that his pop — a nine-time Emmy winner — was "a warrior, a brave artist who opened up his heart and soul and said, 'Here I am.' He ignored the rules and trends and fads and gave America what it wanted — the tenderness and beauty of the human experience." |
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