They are definitely serious about pursuing this "Huddy" romance as far as they possibly can this season on 'House' (Mon., 8PM on FOX). This week, House met Cuddy's mother, played with vicious glee by Candice Bergen.

How do you properly prepare someone to meet Dr. Gregory House? Is it possible to explain that personality and still make them understand why you love him anyway? It might be easier if the person you're explaining him to is just as out of their mind.

In a comparison of who's more brash, unlikable and opinionated, we'd be hard-pressed to declare a winner just yet. Cuddy's mother swooped onto the scene by blindsiding House at the hospital and then laying into Cuddy, calling into question the image she's presenting to her child.

Spartacus: Gods of the Arena - Sunday, January 23, 10PM ET/MT, The Movie Network/Movie Central

This is a prequel to 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand', dreamed up to give lead actor Andy Whitfield time to recover from cancer before reprising his role. But no worries -- fans can expect the same subtle blend of graphic bloody violence and graphic sweaty sex scenes they've come to count on the series to deliver.

Despite a potential for camp (Lucy Lawless does star, after all), the 'Spartacus' series should soothe those missing HBO's 'Rome' and please anyone who loves a good machete fight.

Murphy Brown is in the 'House.' Yep, Candice Bergen is making a 'House' call to play Cuddy's mother on the hit Fox medical drama.

OK, enough with the puns, here are the details: The five-time Emmy winner will begin her multi-episode arc in November. According to The Ausiello Files, this is Bergen's first TV role since 'Boston Legal' wrapped. No word on an official episode count, but be sure to see plenty of shared screen time between Bergen, Lisa Edelstein (Cuddy) and Hugh Laurie (House).

In other casting news ...

• Patty Duke has joined the cast of Lifetime's 'Unanswered Prayers,' the TV flick about Garth Brooks' song. The movie follows a couple, played by Eric Close and Samantha Mathis, whose lives change when a woman, played by Madchen Amick, returns to their small town. Duke will play mom to Manthis' character. Alex Frnka has also been cast as the girlfriend to the couple's son. [Deadline Hollywood]

• Lucy Liu will headline 'Marry Me,' a four-hour multi-part movie on Lifetime. The movie, about a woman looking for her true love, also has Steven Pasquale, Bobby Cannavale , Enrique Murciano and Annie Potts on board. [Variety]

• Lou Diamond Phillips has joined Sherry Stringfield and Jamie-Lynn Sigler in Josh Berman's untitled Lifetime cop pilot. Phillips will play the boss to Stringfield and Sigler's police detective characters. [Deadline Hollywood]

They're anticipated, but sometimes dreaded. They can be just what a show needs, or a ratings killer. They can unite or divide audiences. What has this much power in television? TV babies.

Jim and Pam on 'The Office' are just the latest fictional couple to welcome a baby into their wacky fold in tonight's special one-hour episode (9PM ET, NBC). To commemorate the occasion, we're taking a walk around the virtual nursery, looking back at some of TV's most anticipated -- for both good and bad reasons -- babies.

Did your favorite TV baby make the list? Check after the jump.

Gene Roddenberry, the late, great creator of 'Star Trek', is boldly going on one final journey: to the Television Academy Hall of Fame.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Roddenberry tops the list of boob tube greats making the cut for this year's induction ceremony, which will be held on January 20. Others joining Roddenberry in the honor, which were chosen by a Television Academy selection committee, are Candice Bergen, Tom and Dick Smothers, Don Pardo, Bob Stewart and Charles Lisanby.

This might sound more overdue than According to Jim's cancellation, but one of TV's greatest creators is getting the Hall of Fame treatment.

Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry will join the ranks of the Television Academy's Hall of Fame next year at a special induction ceremony at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Other inductees include Candice Bergen, production and art director Charles Lisanby, announcer Don Pardo, Tom and Dick Smothers and game show producer Bob Stewart. Is there anyone that they left off the list?

The success of Slumdog Millionaire and Frost/Nixon recently inspired me to assess the ten best movies about television. TV has been a fertile source of entertainment for filmmakers. The TV turf is also a popular setting for TV shows, and there have been some all-time great shows about the tube. Here are nine that I think warrant special recognition -- in no special order.

1. The Mary Tyler Moore Show
It all started at WJM-TV in Minneapolis. The Mary Tyler Moore Show was the perfect sitcom blend of home and work, and work happened to be the local TV news team. As Mary Richards, the associate producer, Mary Tyler Moore was the single girl America loved because she was real, funny, gorgeous and lovable. At work, the news was mangled nightly by Ted Baxter, the quintessential news reader anchorman who loved every dulcet tone of his voice and had no idea what he was reporting. In perfect irony, when the show came to an end, most everyone at WJM -- Lou Grant, Murray Slaughter, Sue Anne Nivens, Mary -- were fired. Only Ted was spared!

While ABC, NBC, and CBS have historically remained in a cutthroat battle for viewers, each network has shared one common trait: come the season of network promotional campaigns, all actors must be prepared to look absolutely ridiculous.

After the jump ... Remember this pop cultural gem (video below) that gained traction on the Net not too long ago? The sheer oddity of the clip alone forces us to ask ourselves several questions: do these people all live together? Why is Marla Gibbs dressed like an astronaut? Does Bea Arthur do everybody's shoppingl? CAN'T NELL CARTER JUST SIT DOWN AND REST HER FEET FOR A SECOND? (Seriously, give her a break!)

Let's face it; Boston Legal has always been a silly show. A show that dealt with serious issues and spun out some seriously stern sermons on the status of the human condition in 21st century America, but always in front of a backdrop of chaos at Crane, Poole and Schmidt.

From cases that even Don Quixote would think were lost causes to the inappropriate behavior of Alan Shore, Denny Crane, and others, to the not-so-subtle references that these lawyers know they're on a TV show, Boston Legal was always was one moment away from drowning in its own silliness.

But last night's series finale descended into more silliness than I think even the show's most ardent fans could handle. There were sincere moments, but most of them barely had time to breathe and linger on people's consciousness before we got even more silliness.

The cast of Boston Legal is now moving to children's toys. This only seems like a joke, but it's not. William Shatner, James Spader and Candice Bergen are among the celebrities and artists who will be designing new versions of "My Little Pony", the toy from the 1980's which launched an animated television series and movie.

(UPDATE: Stacey Luchs, a spokeswoman for the show, said Thursday that Shatner and Spader were unaware of the venture and would not participate.)

The special ponies will be auctioned off by Hasbro as a charity fundraiser. Other pony-designing celebrities include LeAnn Rimes, Debbie Gibson and Danny Aiello. Artists designing ponies include illustrator Catalina Estrada from Spain, New York graffiti artist-turned-designer Claw Money and Japanese manga artist Junko Mizuno.

Still, it beats having to redesign Planet Unicorn.

When I first saw the URL for wowowow.com, I thought it had to do with pain. You know, someone is hitting you over the head with a ruler and you're saying "ow...ow...ow!"

Upon closer inspection I see that it stands for WOW O WOW. It's a web site that launches this Saturday. It's described as a site for women over 40, and the people behind it include Lesley Stahl, Whoopi Goldberg, Candice Bergen, Lily Tomlin, Marlo Thomas, columnist Liz Smith, advertising veteran Mary Wells, publishing exec Joni Evans, and writer Peggy Noonan, among others.

Reunions are hot, you know? On February 12, for example, Oprah reunited (most of) the kids from The Cosby Show, with Bill appearing via satellite. Well, never one to let a good idea go to waste, NBC jumped on the theme. They recently had a Family Ties reunion on Today, so now the morning show is commencing tomorrow with a series of more "Together Again" features. Tune into 8:00 a.m. hour each day so you don't miss a thing!

Sure, I could have titled this post 'Why I'm Declaring a Mistrial on Boston Legal' or 'Case Adjourned on Boston Legal'. But, you're a smart bunch a people who aren't into the corny. So, let me be truthful for a moment and let you know why I'm no longer going to review Boston Legal.

I'm tired.

Well, that's only one reason, but a very important one. It's going to sound like a kvetch, I know, but it is a bit tiring to review a show week after week, particularly one that airs at the end of prime-time. You have to schedule for it, watch it in a different manner then you would if you were a normal viewer, and then cull the highlights of the show into a 10-15 paragraph review. When the show you're reviewing is getting a bit dull, writing a post on it can become a chore.

And, that's where I am with Boston Legal right now.

(S03E13) Shirley Schmidt: This is getting ugly.

Denny Crane: Denny Crane ugly.

The whole Denise-Brad-Jeffrey sex plot has got to go! At first I thought it was kind of amusing. But, after three weeks of it the whole storyline has reached the tiring stage, especially if you saw the scenes from next week's show. It's like watching an episode of The O.C., except with much older people. Frankly, I really don't care who Denise is sleeping with. Hell, she could be sleeping with Paul for all that matters (that would make a much better story). It's time to get past it and have these three focus on the Legal portion of Boston Legal.

Now, with that out of the way, let's press on with this week's fairly Alan Shore-free episode.

(S3E10) So, after a few murders, missing body parts, incestuous love between a mother and her son, and the kidnapping of Shirley Schmidt, we get back to the normal absurdity that is Boston Legal. This week features a custody case involving two white supremacist singing sensations, a woman who wants to sue God because her husband was struck by lightning, a pro-anorexic girl who is seeking emancipation from her mother, and Shirley in a bunny suit. In other words, just a normal couple of days at the law firm of Crane, Poole and Schmidt.

All that, plus appearances by Clarence, Bethany, Bethany's mom and Jerry (Aaaaarrrrgggghhh!) and yet another alum of Star Trek. So, let's get comfy and press ahead on the last new episode before the holiday break.