Michael Cudlitz is a favorite around here -- he's popped in to play on The Show Girl a few times, and he was more than game to come dish about the final season of 'Lost.'

What makes this 'Southland' star an expert on 'Lost'? Um, hello -- real fans know that Cudlitz appeared on two episodes of the hit ABC show as Big Mike, Ana Lucia's LAPD partner and, later, the detective who questions Hurley after his post-Oceanic 6 high-speed car chase.

So will we be seeing Big Mike and his big mustache again when Michelle Rodriguez pops back up this season? Cudlitz plays coy, but one thing's for sure: he will always find a way to seamlessly incorporate a plug for TNT's 'Southland' in everything he does.

And because I love the show too, here's mine: don't miss tonight's stellar season finale of 'Southland' (Tues., April 6, 10PM ET on TNT).

When it comes to 'Southland,' star Michael Cudlitz tells it like it is. He was the first to speak out when NBC swiftly cancelled the series before season 2 could even begin, and he's still very vocal regarding their decision, especially in light of the show's stellar first episodes back (premieres Tues., March 2, 10PM ET on TNT).

Cudlitz talked to AOL TV about the show getting more focused -- "it's just better" -- and TNT's dedication to promoting it and making it a hit. But what about his character Officer Cooper's pill addiction? "It definitely gets darker before it gets lighter ... if it does get lighter," he teases with a laugh.

Watch the full interview now to hear it all, and to find out which fellow 'Southland' cop he'd want to trade places with for a day. His answer is funny (of course), and based entirely on footwear.

One of the biggest "What the ..." moments of fall TV didn't even happen on TV. In a bizarre fit of scheduling shake-ups, NBC cancelled critically acclaimed drama 'Southland' just weeks before the second season was set to premiere. TNT has picked up the show, so now 'Southland' fans -- and hilariously vocal star Michael Cudlitz -- can rest easy.

AOL TV sat down with Cudlitz before all the drama went down -- you can see the full interview after the jump -- and we also just caught up with him again to get his reaction to the big news.

Southland, the gritty new police drama from film producer Ann Biderman, puts the spotlight on the dark and grimy corners of Los Angeles as seen through the eyes of uniformed cops and plainclothes detectives. Unfortunately, the series premiere is mired in cop show clichés and forgets to deliver anything we haven't seen before.

The first episode – stream it now or watch it below, a week before it debuts on NBC – owes a lot to NYPD Blue, Homicide: Life on the Street and countless other cop shows that came before it. It's a procedural with a large cast about cops struggling to balance "the job" with their personal lives.

Fans of Standoff, the FOX hostage negotiator drama starring Ron Livingston and Rosemarie DeWitt, were worried when it was announced that the show was moving to Fridays. Now here's more to be concerned about: the show isn't returning at all until the summer.

It was supposed to return in April, but FOX has decided the show won't be back until after the network announces its fall schedule in May. I wonder how this will affect their decision, since the show has been on hiatus for a while and they're not going to know what the summer numbers are until, well, the show airs in the summer. They insist the show isn't canceled, but this can't be seen as a "good" sign, that's for sure. It got pretty good numbers when it was on.

For the record, I thought the show was so-so.