'Big Love' cast talks it up

Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin discuss the series' philosophy and the challenge of understanding their characters.

"Big Love" has been blazing through its third season. Will Scheffer, who created the show with Mark V. Olsen, his partner in work and husband in life, said, "Everything that we hinted at, that we were building to, we said: 'Let's just do it -- let's go as far as we can this year and burn through it.' "

The results: Love has ebbed a bit for now, and we have been left with big. The polygamous Henricksons -- Bill ( Bill Paxton), Barb ( Jeanne Tripplehorn), Nicki (Chloë Sevigny) and Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin) -- have fought over birth control, the fleeting affections of a fourth wife and, most of all, the continuous and escalating tension between their sparkling suburban lives and the filthy Mormon fundamentalist compound that haunts them.

In an e-mail, Olsen wrote: "It's important, clearly, that our characters aren't singularly snarky or sour all the time, and there's got to be an underlying love and devotion between them, but the fact that I may love you, or whomever, is just not particularly interesting unless it's blended with the fact that you really piss me off too -- it's that combustion, negotiating that mix of feelings that I think keeps an audience coming back for more."

-- By Kate Aurthur

Read the full story here.

(Photo courtesy Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

'Battlestar Galactica': Hera, Boomer and the sounds of a Cylon

Like a good basketball player, "Battlestar Galactica" lulled everyone to sleep, slowly dribbling the ball as we all tried to steal it. Suddenly, with the shot clock down to 5, it darted past us for a slam dunk. Two points, and even though many knew (or thought they knew) it was coming, there wasn't anything you could do to stop it.

Did we ever really trust Boomer? A little. Athena worked hard and gained our trust, and it's difficult not to trust someone who has the same face of someone you trust. Got that? The stupid Cylon projection trick, seeing Galen smile ... Boomer not only made him believe, but many of us may have thought, "Oh, maybe she's reformed and they'll still kill her because of her crimes" 'cause that's how the gritty "Galactica" seems to work.

'Gossip Girl': No Doubt reunites on spinoff pilot

Mark the May 11 "Gossip Girl" episode on your calendars. Not only will the episode serve as the pilot to the much-anticipated spinoff (which, by the way, just cast Brittany Snow as young Lily), but it will also feature a performance by No Doubt. The band is embarking on its reunion tour that month so it's timely in that sense. However, No Doubt broke out in the mid-'90s, not the '80s, when the spinoff takes place. Will we be seeing No Doubt  members as themselves pre-self-titled-debut or will they be masquerading as a fictitious '80s band? The band's website notes that it'll be covering Adam and the Ants' "Stand and Deliver" so we'll just have to wait until May 11 to find out which version of the band shows up. My fingers are crossed that they play themselves and Gwen Stefani sings "Trapped in a Box" in her original bleached-blond, ska-punk get-up.

-- Enid Portuguez

(Photo: Gwen Stefani performs with the band No Doubt. Credit: Robert E. Klein /AP)

Review: 'Running in Heels'

Given that clothes make the (hu)man, it's no surprise to find fashion at the center of those sorts of television series that purport to show us reality. (And there is "Ugly Betty" too.) From "Project Runway," down through "What Not to Wear," "The Rachel Zoe Project" and various makeover, styling, and shopping and modeling shows too numerous to watch, if not to name, the rag trade and the people who analyze, promote and apply its products are, as Heidi Klum would say in her Heidi Klum accent, in.

“Running in Heels,” which premieres Sunday on the Style Network, is a "behind-the-scenes" look at the magazine Marie Claire, filtered through the experience of three new interns. It is a little like "The Hills" without the boys, and a little like "Stylista," the CW reality series in which contestants vied for an editorial post at Elle, except without the stunt challenges and weekly eliminations. But that is not to say that there is no competition.

If this self-styled "docu-series" is partly a piece of self-promotion -- Marie Claire getting in a game already played by rival Elle through "Project Runway" and "Stylista" -- it isn't the first documentary to have been backed or approved by its subject. And if cooperation comes at the price of the whole truth, there is at least the access and a chance of something interesting. (To be sure, the show is too fast and fragmented to go deeply into anything.) So while you may not see the darker side of new fashion director Nina Garcia, who arrives from Elle to take up her new post -- you see more of it on "Project Runway," really -- you will get a little bit of an idea of what being Nina Garcia entails.

Read more here.

(Photo courtesy Style Network)

UPDATED: 'Biggest Loser' issues a marathon apology for misleading viewers

It was an inspiring finish to this week's two-part episode of NBC's "The Biggest Loser": Dane, who lost 100 pounds in just eight weeks before being eliminated from the weight-loss competition, is seen running a marathon alongside his fit-and-trim wife and crossing the finish line in what appears to be an eye-popping time of three hours and 53 minutes.

Only it didn't happen. Dane got himself an assist to the finish line courtesy of a field producer. UPDATED: Here's the statement Dane released late Friday:

"I always intended to run the full marathon. At the 17th mile, I knew I would not make it in time to cross the finish line before it closed at 6 hours, so I then received a ride from the field producer, who wanted to show me crossing the finish line. He drove me for three miles, and then I ran the rest of the way. After all the filming was done I went back and finished the last 3 miles later that day with my wife and cousin Blaine. I apologize for stating that I ran the entire marathon before I actually ran the whole 26 miles. I am proud of the feat of just running 26 miles in one day."

Here's the statement issued earlier in the day by Reveille, one of the show's producers:

As the Executive Producers of The Biggest Loser we would like to make an official apology and set the record straight with regards to the claim in last nights episode that Dane completed a marathon in Arizona.

After seeing on various online blogs that this information may be inaccurate we investigated the claim and found that Dane had not indeed completed the marathon unaided. From our internal investigation we learned that Dane ran the first 17 miles before receiving a ride from the field producer for 3 miles before rejoining the race at the 20 mile mark whereupon he completed the race.

We are incredibly proud of Dane for running 23 miles and losing over 130 lbs on his weight loss journey so far and wish him luck as he continues his new healthy lifestyle. We have also taken the necessary action to ensure that there is no future misrepresentations and sincerely apologize for misleading our loyal viewers and it was certainly not our intent but an unwitting mistake.

We hope they will continue to be inspired and motivated by all of our contestants and follow them as they continue to change their lives.

Here's NBC's statement:

In the final segment of last night's episode of “The Biggest Loser,” which updated viewers on the status of an eliminated contestant, the former contestant was shown running a marathon in his home state of Arizona. NBC today learned that the contestant did not, in fact, run the entire marathon as depicted in the segment. Because the segment as aired was contrary to NBC policy, we are working with the program producers to determine how this occurred, and to ensure that corrective action is taken.

Sources close to the production said this is what happened:

Report: 'Grey's Anatomy' to get more Jessica Capshaw

"Grey's Anatomy" has reportedly inked a deal with Jessica Capshaw for the former "Practice" actress to remain on "Grey's Anatomy" through the remainder of the season, writes Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello.

Capshaw has already appeared on five episodes of the series in 2009, and her character, pediatric surgeon Dr. Arizona Robbins, has a crush of Dr. Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez).

Entertainment Weekly notes that Capshaw initially signed on for three episodes, and there is an option for her to return in the fall.

Zap2It notes, "The extension of Capshaw's time on 'Grey's' jibes with statements ABC chief Stephen McPherson made at January's TV critics press tour. Responding to criticism that the network pressured the show to end the lesbian relationship between Callie and Brooke Smith's Erica Hahn, McPherson noted that Callie would soon be in a 'dedicated' relationship."

-- Todd Martens

Photo: Associated Press

Brian Williams isn't Twittering

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Brian Williams was the first evening news anchor to blog, but he has yet to Twitter.

Many of his colleagues in the news media have jumped on the micro-blogging platform, which allows users to distribute 140-character “Tweets” over the Web and through text messages, but the NBC News anchor so far is holding out. 

“When you Twitter, the subject line automatically is, ‘What are you doing right now?’ And the answer I have to that question at any moment of the day isn’t interesting enough,” Williams told Jon Stewart during an appearance Thursday on “The Daily Show.”  “It’s not interesting enough to my family and friends. My dog doesn’t wake up when I come home.”

That came as a let-down to his Twittering fans, who responded with delight when a new Twitter user named NBC_BriWi appeared suddenly on the social media site Thursday, joking about Matt Lauer’s abs and plugging a story about the economy on that night’s “NBC Nightly News.”

A NBC News spokeswoman said the Twitterer was an impostor, and by this morning, his or her page had been pulled down.

The unmasking happened far more quickly than the exposure of Twitter user “Maya Angelou” as a fraud. By the time the hoax was revealed this week, the fake Angelou had accumulated 2,495 followers. 

-- Matea Gold

'Hell's Kitchen': Everyone hates Lacey, Colleen can't spell

Colleen can't tell the difference between sugar and salt. She can't cook. She can't cheer. And she can't spell "victory." Gotta give her this much, though, she seems completely undaunted by the public thrashing she's been getting at the hands of Chef Gordon Ramsay.

Amazingly, she lives to see another day. Why? Because, equally amazing, she wasn't the worst cook in the kitchen tonight.

That title for the night went to Seth, who, despite being Chef Ramsay's No. 1 fan/stalker, was sent packing after a poor performance that included, among other things, wiping his sweaty face with a nasty-looking towel -- and then using the nasty-looking towel to wipe a pan. Ewww!

Other highlights:

Rebecca Rand Kirshner Sinclair to steer '90210' for two more years

On the heels of Tuesday’s renewal news, “90210” studio, CBS Paramount, has signed show runner Rebecca Rand Kirshner Sinclair to a new two-year contract, keeping the “Gilmore Girls” alumna at the helm of one of The CW's signature dramas.

Sinclair is the third shepherd of the updated of version of the iconic teen series –- she took over in September -– and has been credited with helping the new “90210” find its narrative voice, also bringing aboard former “Gilmore” writers Jennie Snyder and Gayle Abrams. (Executive producers Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah will not continue with the series.)

“I got to a point, where I felt like I was renting this house, this show, that I felt weird making changes to,” Sinclair said. “Then I started enjoying myself and began to see the potential in the characters and in the story lines we were coming up with … and then I knew I had to buy it."

When the series returns Tuesday, March 31, in its new 9 p.m. time slot –- out of the “American Idol” path of destruction -- Sinclair said fans can expect an amped-up “90210.” She teases: “There’s some crazy stuff in it. We’ll see where Naomi and Liam are going, and Silver’s crisis hits a whole new level in a most unexpected way.

“I don’t usually check the Internet for reactions, but I definitely will be checking after this episode.”

The show will also see familiar faces to the zip code: In April, Tori Spelling makes her comeback as Donna Martin  and, behind-the-scenes, Jason Priestley returns to direct an episode.

Still on her agenda: Putting the spotlight on Beverly Hills (much in the same way “Gossip Girl” does on Manhattan's Upper East Side.) “Beverly Hills is one of the most extraordinary places on Earth, so strange and peculiar. You could see a woman from behind and think she’s 18 and she turns around she’s actually 80,” Sinclair said. “It’s like being in some wild animal park, and I feel like we have yet to scratch the surface of that.”

-- Denise Martin

Related:
'90210': Cupid fires, cynical Silver goes down
Complete '90210' coverage on Showtracker

Photo: Rebecca Rand Kirshner Sinclair. Credit: CBS Paramount

'America's Best Dance Crew': The last quest for beats

In its most diverse season to date, the viewers of "America's Best Dance Crew" finally got it right with their choice of the final two crews.  The best, most consistent and most popular crews all season long made it to the end.

Whether that makes it anti-climactic or not is up to everyone watching, but it has played out to expectations.  The last piece was put into place when the popular Quest Crew, having to battle in the bottom two for the first time, went head-to-head with the little dancers that could, Fly Khicks.  The Miami girls are used to the position, whereas Quest Crew members may have felt like they had something to prove.  And prove it they did.