It's been a long time (almost a year at this point) since Sci Fi's surprise hit Eureka has been on the air. The show, a casualty of last year's writers strike and this year's recession woes, returns next Friday, July 10 at 9 PM with the final 10 episodes of season 3.

Series star Colin Ferguson and co-creator Jamie Paglia spoke to reporters on a media call and dished a little dirt on all the mid-season drama that's coming up. After the jump we'll get into Sheriff Carter finally having a "real honest love interest," the possibility of two well-liked characters making a re-appearance on the show, and, sadly, the one face that we won't be seeing (at all) around Eureka. Just a heads up to serious spoiler-phobes, there's an answer to at least one question you may want to avoid.

Can you talk about Carter's story arc going forward?
CF: From an acting perspective what's really nice about [the last ten episodes] is I get to have emotional lines, more specifically with Jordan Hinson [who plays the Sheriff's daughter Zoe], as we decide whether she is or isn't going to go off to college. And it's also dealing with Salli [who plays Allison Blake] as more on a friendship capacity than a lover capacity, because obviously she's pregnant through these last episodes. I enjoyed that, being able to sort of dig deeper on the friendship angle of our relationship.

JP: We wanted to bring in a new love interest for Carter, and change the dynamic that we had traditionally. We wanted to bring in a new character, with the actress Jamie Ray Newman [who will be playing Tess Fontana], who has a history with Allison; they are old friends. But that gets a little tense, when she and Carter begin to develop a romantic connection. Which was really fun to play, and to give Carter a real honest love interest.

What other changes can we expect?
JP: We wanted to bring in a romantic quality of the show ... We wanted Fargo to get a girlfriend, which we've finally done. We wanted to step up the relationship with Jo and Zane and challenge it. Is it a short term thing, or is it something more? And also for Zoe and her boyfriend Marcus, who's at an age now where they are talking about college and whether or not they are going to go to the same place. We got a chance to deepen those connections and relationships.

With this new love interest coming in, what's going on with Carter and Allison? Will they ever get together?
CF: There was nothing in the way of them getting together before, and I just don't know that would have been really hard to play sort of week after week ... I think they're truly earning it. I have faith that it's going to happen. I do, I think it's going to happen. I think that they're really going to come to a nice place eventually where they're so close as friends, and they're so comfortable that it's less sort of puppy love or first love, but more of a deep emotional understanding of each other. It's going to be a real reunion when it happens, I think.

JP: We always intended that to be a potential future ... It may take a long time to get there, and it's not going to be the same road that was traveled in the alternate time line [the one that ended season one of the show]. Those changes are part of the show, but whether Allison and Carter end up together, that's still a potential outcome. You never know what the future holds. If you believe strongly enough, and you maintain those connections, anything's still possible. We really wanted them to earn it.

Who will be the new Big Bad?
JP: We wanted to have another Big Bad, but we wanted it to be something different and have it sort of tie in some how to the historical aspect of our characters and the town on a personal level. So it's not necessarily a person, it's a thing. We don't know what it is. But the question is, is it from out there? Is it man made? But it is coming towards Eureka, and we have to deal with it.

Can you give us any scoop on guest stars this season?
JP: I don't want to spoil it, but I can tell you there are two characters who have been a major part of our series. That was a lot of fun for all of us, to be able to bring back some of the people we've been missing for a while.

Let's not beat around the bush. Is there a chance that we'll see Nathan Stark (Ed Quinn) back this season?
JP: I don't want to tease people with false hope ... Nathan will not be back in these last 10 episodes.

CF: I mean the future is open ... I'd love to have Ed back in some capacity at any point during the future. He's on True Blood, so watch him on that, by the way.

What was it like sliding into the director's chair this season?
CF: Sliding into the director's chair was absolutely fantastic. I've wanted to do it for a while. I loved every second of it. And it's such a great thing to have been allowed to do and I hope to do a lot more of it. It was also great to be able to work with Erica Cerra [Deputy Jo Lupo] who doesn't get a ton to do on a lot of emotional stuff. To be with her through that experience was fantastic.

Finally, what has been the most unexpected reward of doing Eureka?
CF: What's been an unexpected part of the journey? Probably less to do with the show...I would say on a personal level, what's been most unexpected is how close I've become to some of the cast. I mean, I've been with Jordan Hinson [who plays the Sheriff's daughter Zoe] since she was 13, and just love that girl to bits. And that's really sort of refreshing and the beautiful thing that's come out of this for me.

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And there you have it. I have to say that last piece of information really bummed me out the most. As much as I wasn't a fan of the love triangle between Stark, Carter and Allison, I thought Stark was a perfect foil for Carter in every other aspect. So, thoughts on the new love interest? Carter and Allison eventually ending up together? Or even more interesting, Fargo finally getting a girlfriend?