(S06E12) You can certainly tell that we've turned the corner on this final season of 'Lost.' Suddenly, the alpha-verse and beta-verse seem to be on a collision course with one another, and I'm very intentionally using that expression. With Desmond on the loose in both universes now, things have gotten a lot more interesting, even if I'm still not 100% clear what either of his motivations are.

As expected, the beta-verse Hurley is every bit the financial success with Mr. Cluck's that the alpha-verse Hurley could never quite manage. What was alpha-Hurley's deep-rooted desire, if I'm going to continue that theory, that the beta-verse fulfilled? He said many times that he didn't want the millions he won in the lottery, but I think it was his never-ending plague of bad luck that he really wanted to get rid of. Trying to shed his winnings was just a means to his desired end.

Last Friday on 'The Young and the Restless,' the big reveal -- other than Adam being dead and everyone at the Genoa City Athletic Club was a suspect -- was that the person who had abducted Lauren and locked her in a cage was... Lauren!

What? Okay, it wasn't really Lauren. It was somebody who looked just like Lauren. But who the hell was she? We were left to wonder in our TV Squad weekly recap.

The first guess was that somehow, some way, the Lauren look-alike was Sheila Carter. Even though Sheila, Lauren's arch enemy, is dead... or she's supposed to be dead... could it be that she's not dead? Well, no, no, no. That's not it. 'Y&R' wouldn't stoop to that plot device. At least not this time.

Matt Nix is the man who single-handedly entered the term "burn notice" into the American pop culture lexicon. In a recent conference call about the current season of 'Burn Notice' and Michael Weston's spy games, Matt Nix reflected on the past, gave us a glimpse into the exciting last few episodes this season, and assured us all that despite the torrid chemistry, Bruce Campbell and Sharon Gless are not going to hook up as Sam and Maddie. Michael and Fiona, on the other hand, that's still a flame that's burning... if you don't mind the pun.

Q: What can you tell us about upcoming guest stars that you have lined up?

Matt Nix: In the finale, we have Garret Dillahunt coming and doing a pretty amazing bad guy. Let's see, the guy who played Tony Almeida on '24' Carlos Bernard, is playing a bad guy who... under other circumstances he could have been one of the team, but he is willing to do certain things that they're not willing to do. He's a guy who's really committed to what he's doing. It's a pretty devastating performance. He's pretty awesome.

Based on the previews showing Strickler asking Michael to turn on Fiona, the summer season finale of Burn Notice promises to be a bang-up episode. Especially after Fiona walked out on Michael last week because of his obsession with getting back in the intelligence community, i.e. getting the burn notice lifted. However, amid all those hijinks will be a reunion that many, many fans will be tuning in to see -- Cagney and Lacey. That's right, Tyne Daly is guesting on Burn Notice with her former partner Sharon Gless, a.k.a. Michael's mom.

It's taken more than a year for the powers that be to swing this casting coup, and not surprisingly, they've saved it for the season finale. I'm just hoping that they've found a way to weave it into the main story and not make it just a silly subplot, because Daly and Gless deserve a showcase.

So we're down to two.

One thing that I was wondering while watching this episode was ... is Emeril Lagasse even on Food Network anymore? I know there are repeats of his shows still running, but I wasn't aware that he was still doing new things (his show now airs on Fine Living).

You knew that Harold Perrineau's comments were going to cause a bit of controversy. You also knew that he would have to clarify some of the comments a few days later. Here is that clarification.

The Lost star admits to Entertainment Weekly that "I should probably think more before I say things," referring to comments he made that he was irritated with how producers deal with black characters on the hit ABC show and the fact that Michael couldn't be redeemed and have a happy ending with son Walt. He explains that he was just making an observation as a black man and that he wasn't angry at how the story played out, he was just disappointed. He loved working with the cast and crew and wouldn't be surprised if he came back to the show in the future. He also lists his three favorite and least favorite moments on the show.

My prediction? We haven't seen the last of Michael. He'll be back on the show some way, somehow.

You have to give Harold Perrineau points for being brutally honest.

The Lost star, who (spoiler!) blew up last night in the season finale of the show, can't believe that he came back to the show only to be killed off. In fact, his exact words about the decision to kill off Michael are "...what the hell? I came back for that?!"

Perrineau didn't know he was getting killed off until he got a phone call from the producers right before he received the script for the season finale. He's also unhappy that they didn't give Michael and Walt a happy ending. But perhaps the most interesting part of the interview with TV Guide's (but not for long) Michael Ausiello is where Perrineau says the show doesn't know how to treat black characters...

(S04E20) "This is the most elaborate practical joke of all time, or I'm in serious trouble." -- John Sheppard

And there you have it. Atlantis wraps up its fourth season, its first out on its own, with a little time travel and a big cliffhanger ending. It was a finale that I had heard described as "different." Having now seen it, it's hard to argue with the description. Having 56 minutes of your finale be things that didn't actually happen is certainly not the norm. While we can probably all agree on the different label, the bigger question is, "Was it good?"
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(S04E19) "Just another day in outer space." -- Colonel John Sheppard

Now, let me introduce to you...the one and only Carson Beckett! Is he live or is he Memorex? That was the question on everyone's minds this week as fan favorite Dr. Beckett returned to Stargate Atlantis after his unceremonious death last season. Of course, Dr. Keller told us at the very beginning of the episode that he was Carson Beckett. This didn't mean squat, though, because there was a whole episode for that claim to be disputed.

So, was Carson actually Carson or something entirely different? And, what happened with Teyla and Michael? For that, read on.

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(S04E18) Michael, Michael, Michael. If there is anyone out in the Pegasus galaxy that needs a hug and some serious medication it's him. He's angry at the Wraith for finding him an unclean representative of the race, and he isn't too fond of humans, either. So, what does he decide to do, then? He goes ahead and starts poisoning various human populations so the Wraith will be feeding on spoiled goods rather than fresh meat. But that's just the start of his plan. His main goal is to gather an army that will destroy his race and make him the strongest being in the Pegasus galaxy.

Like I said, man needs a hug.

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I'm sure that someone, somewhere is annoyed that, with the release of the new Knight Rider, NBC is completely ignoring the Knight Rider continuity established in Knight Rider 2000 and Knight Rider 2010. If you're that person, I'd highly suggest a) not following the link and b) finding the help you so desperately need.

For the rest of us, enjoy this teaser trailer for the new Knight Rider series. There's not much to be gleaned from it except the obvious: KITT is no longer a TransAM, but rather a Ford Mustang. The other big news that might come as a shocker (Spoiler Warning): it's no longer Michael driving KITT, it's Mike. That's right, Knight Rider, welcome to the name-shortening 21st century!

There are other questions that we can only guess at until the show premiers in February...

There have been rumors of late that Michael Jackson, in an attempt to revive his stalled music career, might just be planning an upcoming surprise appearance on American Idol. But Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe put those rumors to rest in a recent interview with TV Week.com.

When asked if Jackson would be on the show, Lythgoe stated "we won't be seeing him." He also indicated that he wasn't just saying this as a "tease" or because the details are up in the air. Lythgoe added, "the fact is he will not be on American Idol."

At the end of last night's episode of The Office, we saw Michael make a very clumsy advance towards Pam right after his very clumsy public proposal to his "girlfriend," Carol. Ah, Michael... not only does he not know how to conduct a real-life adult relationship, he always complicates things when he misinterprets someone offering a shred of compassion towards him.

But you'd think Pam would have known that, having worked for Michael for so many years. His heart just got broken through his own doing, and she knows he can't handle that kind of thing. It was admirable that she tried to comiserate with him, but she shouldn't have been surprised that Mike might take that the wrong way.

So why did she get so pissed at him? Knowing what she knows, you'd think that she'd just back away and say something like, "Uh, Michael, I know you don't mean that." I mean, she did give him a ride home. But she made him sit in the back and not talk. Hm... maybe Michael got what he deserved after all.

(S18E01) When Bart refuses to let Lisa sit with him on the bus, she tries to complain to Otto, but he'd rather rock out to his Grand Funk Railroad tape than bother with her. She tries to get his attention but manages to break his tape in the process, leaving him with no musical options except the kids' rendition of "Old MacDonald Had a Fart" and whatever crap his bus radio is spewing out. At that moment, he sees Metallica's tour bus stranded on the side of the road, but they opt to get a lift from Moleman, who once slept with Lars' grandmother. Oh yeah, and Bart steals the bus.

Enraged, Otto encounters Bart outside the school and spanks him. The corporal punishment is witnessed by Skinner, who instructs Otto to turn in his beaded seat cushion and gun. Until Otto is reinstated, the kids will have to rely on car pooling to get to school. On the first day, Marge takes Bart, Lisa and their friends, including Fat Tony's son, Michael. Since he's the son of a mob boss, everyone is afraid of Michael and wants nothing to do with him, but Lisa sees he's not the hardboiled criminal his father is and befriends him. Michael reveals he wants to be a chef, which upsets his father who wants him to take over the family business.

OK, so we're all trying to figure out what the hell happened on Lost the other night. For all the new questions the arose (what was that big foot statue, who were the two guys in the Arctic station at the end, are Locke/Eko/Desmond dead, etc), I think the biggest question I have is, what the heck is wrong with Charlie? Wasn't he acting just a little bit peculiar last night? The way he acted with Locke and with Eko, and then when the hatch exploded, the next scene we see the castaways just sitting around a fire and he kisses Claire. Didn't he go to see what happened in the hatch after the big light explosion and that weird noise? Aren't the other castaways wondering what was up with that and where Locke/Eko/Desmond are? That was a weird scene, and I'm trying to figure out whether it means something or if it was just lazy writing.

Anyway, TV Guide's Michael Ausiello held a chat at WashingtonPost.com, and he is asked many questions about the season finale (which he loved). Check it out.