esai morales

(S02E01) As the show began, I couldn't help but feel like I was seeing an old friend. You know, that friend who went away for a semester and you missed because he was always entertaining. I know I wasn't the only one grinning like an idiot as the the new season of Jericho began.

Esai Morales sure has come a long way since he played Ritchie Valens' big brother. Seeing him in another leader role reminds me how good he was on NYPD Blue. Taming Sipowicz is going to look like a piece of cake compared to this job.

Get ready for a new face or two when Jericho (a.k.a -- The Little Show That Could) returns to the CBS primetime schedule early next year. One of those faces will be Esai Morales'.

The former NYPD Blue and Vanished star will appear in a recurring role for six of the seven episodes that have been ordered for the new season. Hmm, in the real world that would seem like a regular rather than occurring role. Semantics aside, Morales will play Colonel Hoffman, a career military officer and Iraq War veteran who has not seen or heard from his wife since the day of the attacks.