If you've been enjoying the series Brotherhood (and Mike C.'s reviews of the show), then Showtime gave you some good news the other day when it renewed the original series for a second season. The show is about two Irish-American brothers -- one is a local politician, and one is involved in their neighborhood's Irish mob, and he's back from being in hiding -- and it has been getting tons of great reviews from critics.

It looks like Showtime is finally starting to get a roster of original series that might start rivaling HBO's. Between this series and Weeds, the network is starting to generate buzzworthy shows that keep people tuning in week after week. The timing is good, since HBO's slate is at a bit of a weak point, with The Sopranos winding down and the failure of its first "traditional sitcom," Lucky Louie.

[via Cynopsis... look about a third of the way down this page.]