Kona told you recently that Benjamin Bratt is coming back to Law & Order for a short time. S. Epatha Merkerson's Van Buren character has been diagnosed with cancer, which always gives shows a chance to bring back old characters. But it also gives a show a chance to bring on new characters, and that's what's going to happen starting this Friday.

Ernie Hudson is joining the show for several episodes. He'll play a guy that's "the love of her life."

Hudson is making the rounds at NBC lately, eh? He was also in a few episodes of Heroes this season until he was killed off last week. I was actually surprised that Hudson was killed off so quickly. He's a semi-big name and I thought he'd be around for a while to investigate our Heroes and that carnival. Then again, the show brought on The Greatest American Hero for, what, one episode before Tracy froze him and he shattered into a million pieces.