TVSquad

Something was amiss during the last three seasons of Law & Order: SVU. With Mariska Hargitay's pregnancy leave, changes in Christopher Meloni's character, the introduction and departure of some cast members, and the demotion of Detective Munch to a desk, the show seemed to have lost its way. It was tough to watch as more melodrama seeped into the show and pushed away the criminal procedurals that have made this Law & Order franchise so popular.

However, change may be on the horizon. With the first two episodes of the tenth season now under their belt, there's a feeling of normalcy that has returned to the show. A sense that the producers may be done tinkering with the program for the time being, despite the introduction of Michaela McManus as new A.D.A Kim Greylek. Some melodrama is still there - they are human beings after all - but the cases are first and foremost for the show.

Recently, we told you about James Brolin appearing in a guest role on Law & Order: SVU, as a man from Elliot's past. Now, there'll be even more development for Christopher Meloni's character when Ellen Burstyn shows up on SVU to play Stabler's mother.

Oh, and she's not your button-downed, upright all together mom. She's bipolar, which is to say that she has a serious psychological disorder.

TVGuide.com reported that it learned that Ms. Burstyn's guest role will be very dramatic -- "explosive" -- and is slated for one episode. Thinking about what's been happening on SVU, the major storyline for Elliot has been revolving around his wife Kathy having another child.

The baby has brought the Stablers back together after a separation. Could Elliot's mother be coming to New York to see her new grandchild and something else go wrong? Hmm...

It's coming. The table is set, the players are on the field, the sails are raised, and the pretty maids are all in a row. Of course, I speak of the 2008-09 television schedule. In just a few short weeks viewers will be able to dine on a number of favorite and new dishes that are being served by the networks as well as the increasing number of cable channels who are delving into original programming.

While other fall seasons have come and gone with nary a whimper, this season may be different. Due to the prolonged Writers Strike many shows ended their seasons quite early. Programs like Life, Private Practice, Pushing Daisies, and Heroes haven't aired original episodes since the end of 2007. Heck, there hasn't been a new episode of The Shield since June of last year! So, the beginning of the 2008-09 season will be a second chance for some of these shows, particularly the ones that premiered last season, to show their worth to fans and the networks.

I'm a huge Law & Order fan, and as such, I am quite jealous of the Brits today. Not only are they getting their very own Law & Order, called Law & Order: UK, but Battlestar Galactica's Jamie Bamber is set to star. Bamber, who just ended his role as Apollo on the Sci Fi Network series, is playing one of the main detectives, along with fellow Englander, Bradley Walsh.

According to Bamber, L&O's UK edition is just like the American version, but will be about "London judiciary and London cops. It's got the same premise as the original American Law & Order, same everything, just with a UK production company and UK actors."

The series is slated to begin production in August and will air on the UK channel ITV. There's no word as to whether or not it will jump the pond and be available to American audiences, but I'd definitely be interested to see how this long-running series translates overseas.

Of all the Law & Orders -- and I watch all three -- Special Victims Unit is the one that indulges in more character-oriented storytelling. That's all for the better, as far as I'm concern, whether that means going inside Olivia's mind as she's struggled with knowing she was a child of rape, or suffering when Elliot's marriage was on the rocks.

When the new season of SVU returns on Tuesday, September 23, we'll be getting some more character development with a special appearance by Emmy winner James Brolin.

Richard Belzer, who plays Detective Munch, mentioned Brolin's guest appearance to TV Guide, saying, "He's a great guy; he's got a big fight scene with Stabler, so that should be fun." Brolin is playing a former military man who shares a past connection with Elliot. Hmm...was Christopher Meloni ever on Pensacola: Wings of Gold? Brolin, by the way, turns 68 this Friday, July 18. Remember when he was the hot, young motorcycle-riding Dr. Steve Kiley on Marcus Welby, M.D.?

Hot off the news that NBC ordered sixteen new episodes of the show, Law and Order: CI has added Jeff Goldblum to the cast. And that means Chris Noth is out.

Goldblum will share lead duties with Vincent D'Onofrio on the USA Network show (new episodes air Sunday nights), and I'm not sure which actor is going to out-act the other. Both Goldblum and D'Onofrio are both well known for their rather quirky and/or intense acting styles. D'Onofrio does intense and explosive well, while Goldblum does strange and quiet well. No word on why Noth left.

So, I'm watching a new episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent on USA Network this past Sunday and, like all upstanding Americans do, I was flipping through the channels during a commercial break. As I passed by these channels at the speed of light my eye caught something on Bravo. It was another episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Not a new episode, mind you, just a repeat of a repeat of a repeat that Bravo airs during their Sunday night block.

Now, you're probably saying to yourself 'So what? Cable channels are allowed to air whatever they damn well please.' Well, after lecturing you about your tone of voice I would mention that you had a point. But, thanks to the wonderful world of corporate synergy, your argument would not meet the mustard. You see, Bravo is under the huge umbrella known as NBC Universal, which is the same company that owns USA Network, which is currently airing new episodes of Law & Order: CI on Sunday nights. With all of this information at hand the following question comes to mind:

Who the hell is programming these networks?

Just when you think it's over, they pull it back in! Actually, I think this is great news and nothing to bemoan. USA Network has ordered 16 new episodes of Law and Order: Criminal Intent. The third spin-off from NBC's venerable -- 18 seasons strong -- Law and Order, CI moved to USA -- part of the NBCU family -- last year after six years on NBC. What's the difference between the shows on NBC and the shows on USA? Absolutely nothing. The quality of the show and the talent in front and behind the camera has remained the same, so I'm really happy that there'll be new L&O: CI in the future. I prefer scripted drama to more reality TV.

(S18E18) Oh, boy. Jack McCoy is up to his neck in trouble now. This Law and Order season finale -- number 18 -- was a maze-like story that started with a gold merchant being murdered, wound its way through high-class escort services, and landed at the desk of the governor of New York. Any resemblance between this story and the demise of real-life New York Governor Eliot Spitzer was completely on purpose.

In true Law and Order fashion, the part about the hookers and the Governor was ripped right from the headlines. Unlike reality, though, the fictional governor was even more slimey and reprehensible than Spitzer seemingly. I'll explain it all, and go into more details about how it comes to bear on the characters on L&O after the jump.

Dennis Farina was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for carrying a firearm through airport security. The Law and Order star was described as "apologetic and cooperative" about the incident. He was released on a $25,000 bond.

Farina, 64, entered acting after serving as a Chicago police officer for twenty years. He is known for his detective roles in movies such as Get Shorty and Sidewalks of New York and on television most notably as Detective Joe Fontana on Law and Order.

The actor had just driven to Los Angeles from Arizona with his .22 caliber semi-automatic pistol in his briefcase. He was scheduled to take a United Airlines flight home to Chicago.

Holy frik! We've only just started to embrace the return of our shows after a shortened strike season. Now, they are almost over. In the next few weeks all of our network favorites will say good-bye for the summer to be replaced with reality shows, reality game shows, reality soap operas, and Regis on primetime (again).

Needless to say, I'm a bit depressed. As I am sure you are as well. But, we will do our duty and press on. Thusly, we here at the sprawling lakefront offices of TV Squad (you choose the lakefront) have compiled list of when your favorite, and not so favorite, shows will be saying good-bye for their summer vacation. As usual, taking the fickleness of the networks, these times and days can change at a moment's notices. We will try to update you of those changes as quickly as our little fingers can type it out.

So, with a leaden heart, here are your season and series finales.

I really wish Tom Everett Scott would find a great role he could sink his teeth into for a few years. He's so talented, and yet he keeps ending up in short-lived and dead-end roles.

The actor has signed for a two-episode guest stint on NBC's Law & Order, playing Governor Shalvoy, according to a Hollywood Reporter story. He'll be joined in one of the episodes by Alison Elliott, playing his wife, Rita Shalvoy.

Since breaking onto the Hollywood scene in 1996's That Thing You Do, Scott has floundered in short-lived series like 2002's Philly, playing Kim Delaney's love interest, and 2006's Saved, where he played a troubled paramedic. Most recently, he played Lucy Liu's estranged fiance on Cashmere Mafia.

If you saw the previews of this week's episode of Law & Order, you know that it's Jesse L. Martin's last show. The NBC promo implies that Detective Ed Green has gotten into major trouble and will be brought up on charges for his actions, perhaps lose his badge. That would be a very dramatic way to wrap up his nine years on Law and Order, and unlike the near-fatal shooting his character survived a couple of years ago, it leaves open the door for a guest stint down the road. But not too soon. Jesse L. Martin is in talks to star in a Broadway version of Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, taking on the Sidney Poitier role.

There's been another transfer out of the squad at NBC. Detective Chester Lake has turned in his badge. Actor Adam Beach is leaving Law and Order: SVU. He'll be on the show till the end of this season -- his one and only with Law and Order: SVU.

Adam Beach, who was also excellent in the Clint Eastwood feature Flags of Our Fathers as the troubled serviceman Ira Hayes, uncomfortable with the acclaim he received as one of the men who rose the flag at Iwo Jima, received a number of award nominations for his role on the HBO mini-series Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee. It was on that project that he worked with producer Dick Wolf.

"From the first day I met him on the set of Bury My Heart, I was knocked out by his commitment, dedication and total immersion in the film's most crucial role," said Wolf.

This is a bummer. (By the way, isn't there a better expression than that to describe disappointment? "What a shame" is just too British to me.) Anyway, TV Guide's Michael Ausiello reports that Law & Order: SVU has lost Diane Neal. The actress, who's played assistant district attorney Casey Novak on the Dick Wolf show for five years has turned in her resignation. This season will be her last. "Diane spent five years on SVU and was a tremendous addition to the SVU team. She is looking forward to new opportunities and she will be missed," says the NBC source about her departure.

Like I said, I'm not happy about this one. Unlike so many of the faces and forms that come in and out of the L&O universe, Diane Neal stuck out. And I mean that in a good way. She had a presence and a passion, which was not only recognizable amid the many others who seem interchangeable, it was crucial to match fire with Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay and the other SVU cast.