marymcdonnell

(S04E11) Note: technically the Razor television movie counts as the first two episodes of the season, so this is actually episode 13. And what an episode it was! It answered the biggest question from the viewers and in the process created a few more.

FYI, the episode title is taken from the folk song "Goodnight, Irene", which pretty much fits the theme of the episode.

I really liked Mary McDonnell's acting in this episode. I felt heartbroken at her breakdown upon discovering the remains of Earth and her inability to share the information with the fleet. Whenever things get bad, at least we're not on the run from homicidal machines with our last great hope for sanctuary a radioactive wasteland.

On to the spoilery bits!

If you're like me, you're ready to follow your favorite Battlestar Galactica cast members wherever they go, even if they end up on an ill-conceived star vehicle for Benjamin Bratt, (sorry Grace Park!). Thankfully, most of the BSG alums seem to be moving in the right direction.

Mary McDonnell (Roslin) was great on a recent Grey's Anatomy guest stint, and Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck) landed a guest gig on Law and Order and is starring in a pilot produced by Dick Wolf. IMDb tells me that Jamie Bamber (Apollo) will play a cop in the upcoming Law & Order: London. I'm sure most BSG fans wouldn't mind sitting through a few procedural shows in order to keep an eye on these former Colonials, but will they follow them off the small screen and download their audio books?

Let's get the bad/obvious news out of the way first: Despite what ER showrunner David Zabel told TV Guide in a recent interview, George Clooney will not -- repeat NOT -- be returning to the show for it's 15th and final season.

According to Clooney's publicist, "He is on record as saying he is not coming back. It is something he has already done. He is busy making movies." If you're an optimist, though, you can always hope for a surprise Clooney return a la the 2000 ER season finale, in which Georgie showed up at the very end of Julianna Margulies' farewell ep.

On a more positive note, there are plenty of actors who ARE joining popular existing series or are attached to promising upcoming projects. A rundown of these casting coups ensues.

Battlestar Galactica listings, photos and more