[Televisionary]

In recent years, it’s been a given that romantic pairs on television had to be subjected to the will-they or-won't-they dilemma—where couples as clearly in love as Ross-and-Rachel, Sam-and-Diane, or Jim-and-Pam were prevented from jumping into bed together for years, as the writers forced them through increasingly tight narrative hoops. These days, though, it seems like more and more TV couples just will. As writer-producers have sought to surprise the audience, they’re puncturing romantic tropes in the process. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "The Death of Will-They-or-Won't-They," for which I talk to Community ’s Dan Harmon, Parks and Recreation ’s Mike Schur and Greg Daniels, and Bones ’ Hart Hanson about how TV is throwing off that age-old will-they-or-won’t-they paradigm in the post-Jim-and-Pam era.

Twitter should be a tool for audiences to interact with the talent behind their favorite shows—instead, anonymous users heap abuse onto writer-producers for ruining "their" shows. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "Twitter's TV War," in which I speak to Community 's Dan Harmon, Bones ' Hart Hanson, and Grey Anatomy 's Shonda Rhimes about the complicated relationship between access, privacy, and angry fans on the social networking platform. I'm curious to know what your take is and whether you side with showrunners or fans. What happens when the dialogue turns ugly? Head to the comments section to discuss.

What happens when the glue holding a group of people together takes off for far-flung adventure? What happens to those left behind? And is it ever possible to bring those now distant people back together again? Can you fix what's been broken? Those are the questions hovering over the action on tonight's sixth season premiere of FOX's Bones ("The Mastodon in the Room"), which sees the gang at the Jeffersonian attempt to reform the gang when their individual sabbaticals come to abrupt ends. The cause? An effort to save the career of Cam (Tamara Taylor), undergoing intense scrutiny when she lacks the certainty to identify the skeletal remains of a child in the face of a massive media blitz for a controversial story: the disappearance of a two-year old boy. Is the tiny skeleton in the morgue the boy that everyone's looking for? Or is it an unrelated crime? Up until now, Cam's been in this fight alone, though she's had the support of tough-talking Caroline...

With so many new fall series premiering over the next two weeks, it's possible to forget that some of our favorites are heading back to the airwaves as well. Can’t remember how Grey’s Anatomy or 30 Rock ended? Head over to the Daily Beast to read my latest feature, "Here Comes the TV Season!" , in which I round-up 13 cliffhangers for returning shows—and offer previews of what’s to come. (It goes without saying: minor SPOILERS aheads.) The series in question? Oh, the usual suspects, including Dexter, The Good Wife, Fringe, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Chuck, Private Practice, Brothers and Sisters, Friday Night Lights, Bones, Community, Castle , and 30 Rock , presented in order of premiere dates. (Which means Chuck is up first.) Plus, you can watch video previews for all 22 new network series , to boot. Which returning series are you most excited about watching this fall? Head to the comments section to discuss.

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. It's official: TBS has cancelled comedy My Boys after four seasons. News comes after series stars Jordana Spiro and Kyle Howard had to withdraw from pilots that had been ordered to series due to their first position on the TBS comedy, whose days many suspected were already numbered. According to Variety 's Jon Weisman, roughly 14 months passed between the end of the third season and the beginning of the fourth season, which kicked off in July. One cast member--Jim Gaffigan--left between the seasons. Spiro's role on Love Bites was eliminated when she was unavailable as the show under went some retooling. ( Variety ) Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello is reporting that John Schneider ( Smallville ) has been cast in a multiple-episode story arc on ABC's Desperate Housewives this season, where he will play the father to Brian Austin Green's Keith, the new handyman/contractor overseeing the remodeling of...

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. I'm not even a Psych fan and this made me blissfully happy. Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello is reporting that USA's Psych is staging a Twin Peaks -inspired episode that will also feature original cast members Sheryl Lee, Sherilyn Fenn, Dana Ashbrook, Catherine Coulson, Ray Wise, Lenny Von Dohlen, and Robyn Lively. Um, yes please. The episode, co-written by series star James Roday, will air sometime this fall and will revolve around "a quirky Northern California town that has been rocked by the death of a high school student." Sound familiar? Coulson will even play a "mysterious Woman with Wood," a tongue-in-cheek take on her Log Lady from Twin Peaks . Sign me up. ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that HBO has given a pilot order to an untitled comedy written/directed by 24-year-old Lena Dunham ( Tiny Furniture ) and executive produce...

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. TV Guide Magazine 's Will Keck is reporting that Bones producers have turned lemons into lemonade with their upcoming Jersey Shore -inspired episode, following the breakdown in talks with The Situation. Instead, Bones has recruited Antonio Sabato Jr. to play a "guido bouncer at a Jersey Shore club that Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanaz) visit to question someone involved with a murder." ( TV Guide Magazine ) Mad Men 's Sam Page is heading to the Upper East Side, according to Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello, who reports that Page has been cast in a multiple-episode story arc on the CW's Gossip Girl , where he will play a new love interest for Blake Lively's Serena. He's first expected to turn up in an episode slated to air in October. ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) The Chicago Tribune 's Maureen Ryan--soon to be AOL's chief television critic--has an ...

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello caught up with Fringe star Jasika Nicole to get some information about Season Three of Fringe , kicking off this fall, and a "groundbreaking and mind-blowing" twist. "She is indeed," said Nicole when asked if Astrid would get more to do in Season Three. "And that's due to the fact that there are now two of her that I get to play, which is awesome. [For the first half] of the season, we're alternating episodes, so we've got one in the alternate universe and one in the present universe, so if you were to only [watch] every other episode, you would only see the story happening in one universe." Nicole told Ausiello that the two storylines will converge into a single stream where "everyone's world will be turned upside down." Wowsers. ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) Diablo Cody is heading to FOX. The network signed a put...

Got skeletons in the closet or an ache in your heart? FOX today released a new teaser reel for Season Six of Bones to attendees of the Bones panel at San Diego Comic-Con. Not in San Diego? Or stuck outside Ballroom 20 all afternoon? No worries as you can watch the gorgeous trailer in its full glory below. And, trust me, it looks AMAZING. Season Six of Bones kicks off this fall on FOX.

FOX today announced the launch dates for its new and returning series this fall. House and Lone Star will be the first two scripted series to launch on the network this autumn, with their respective seasons kicking off on Monday, September 20th. The following night brings the second season premiere of Glee and the launches of new comedies Raising Hope and Running Wilde on Tuesday. Hell's Kitchen takes over the two-hour block on Wednesdays, beginning September 22nd and Bones and Fringe return Thursday, September 24th, followed the next night with Human Target and The Good Guys . The full press release from FOX can be found below. FOX ANNOUNCES FALL PREMIERE DATES FOR THE 2010-2011 SEASON NEW DRAMA “LONE STAR” DEBUTS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20 NEW COMEDIES “RAISING HOPE” AND “RUNNING WILDE” TO PREMIERE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 Award-Winning Drama HOUSE Checks In Monday, September 20; GLEE Begins Sophomore Season Tuesday, September 21; Gordon Ramsay Serves Up New Season of HELL’S K...

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing. Another one bites the dust: Melina Kanakaredes is the latest star to leave their CBS drama series, following in the footsteps of A.J. Cook, Eddie Cibrian, and Liz Vassey. Kanakaredes, who has starred on CBS' CSI: NY for six seasons, has announced that she will not be returning for a seventh go-around as Detective Stella Bonasera. "We hoped Melina would return to CSI: NY for another season, but we respect her decision to move on," said CBS Television Network and CBS Television Studios in a joint statement released yesterday. "Her amazing talent and invaluable contribution to the success of the series are greatly appreciated and will not be forgotten. She will forever remain a friend to the network and studio and we wish her the very best." ( E! Online's Watch with Kristin ) Meanwhile, yesterday's rumor appears now to be a fact: Sela Ward is joining CSI: NY , following Kanakaredes' departure. ( Ent...

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. TV Guide Magazine 's Will Keck is reporting that former Lost co-star Henry Ian Cusick has signed on for a multiple-episode story arc on NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit , where he will play Erik Weber, a graphic artist. Cusick is expected to appear in at least two episodes of the procedural drama and will cross paths with Mariska Hargitay's Detective Olivia Benson. "There might be some flirtation," executive producer Neal Baer told Keck. "Erik meets Olivia when he comes to someone's aid. And then we'll see how it goes. Olivia is devoted to her job and knows that comes first." ( TV Guide Magazine ) It's official: Academy Award nominee David Strathairn will star in Syfy's 90-minute action pilot Alphas , according to a network press release. In the pilot, written by Zak Penn and Michael Karnow and directed by Jack Bender, Strathairn will play the "unconventional, eccentr...

Just a little while after I posted my "Who's In?" post about this year's San Diego Comic-Con International (along with details of the V panel I'll be moderating), I got an email from 20th Century Fox Television in which they spill the details about the eleven series they're bringing to Comic-Con this year. Those series will include Bones, Glee, Sons of Anarchy, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Terra Nova, Futurama, The Cleveland Show, American Dad, Bob's Burgers , and Neighbors From Hell , all of which will present panels in San Diego next month. And, yes, dates and times for the above are included. Intriguingly, both Glee and Sons of Anarchy will be held on Sunday, traditionally a less hectic and relatively more quiet day of programming... while Bones will hold court on Friday afternoon in Ballroom 20 (along with Terra Nova , which is heading to the smaller Ballroom 6A). The full press release from 20th Century Fox Television can be found below. TWENTIETH C...

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. Entertainment Weekly 's Michael Ausiello is reporting that ABC's upcoming superhero drama No Ordinary Family is undergoing some casting changes as Tate Donovan ( Damages ) and Christina Chang ( CSI: Miami ). The actors respectively played the family's doomed pilot and a detective at the precinct where Michael Chiklis' character worked as a police sketch artist. An unnamed source close to the production told Ausiello that the decision was storyline-based and that producers hoped to bring both actors back in a guest starring capacity if their schedules allowed for it. ( Entertainment Weekly 's Ausiello Files ) E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has an interview with Bones star Emily Deschanel, in which she asks the actress about the will-they-or-won't-they romance between Brennan and David Boreanaz's Booth. So will the star-crossed duo ever come together? "[In] the 100th episode we came very close,...

Where did the broadcasters go wrong this season, and what did they do right? Good question. Head over to The Daily Beast, where you can read my latest piece, "TV's Winners and Losers," as I break down the network's performance in the 2009-10 season and (via a nifty gallery) take a look at the season's winners--including Modern Family, Chuck, Vampire Diaries, Fringe, Bones, Parenthood, NCIS (and NCIS: Los Angeles), The Good Wife , and others--and the losers (such as FlashForward, Heroes, Melrose Place and medical dramas in general, as well as the draws. Where did your favorite series end up on the list? And what's your take on the 2009-10 season? Head to the comments section to discuss.

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. FOX has given a major vote of confidence to musical-comedy Glee , which it renewed for a third season... before the first season has even wrapped. News of the pickup was broken by Entertainment Weekly 's Lynette Rice. "Everything about Glee – from the concept to the characters to the marketing – has been innovative and risky, but with [series creator] Ryan Murphy tapping into the zeitgeist, the risk has paid off with this truly remarkable series," said Kevin Reilly, FOX Entertainment President. " Glee has one of the most active, devoted fan bases I’ve ever seen, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to give Gleeks a third season of their favorite show." The upside for FOX and studio 20th Century Fox Television are obvious: "Not only does it help cut production costs over the long haul, it allows Murphy and his writers a chance to plan ahead (if not breathe a much-needed sigh of relief)," writes Rice. ...

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. Could it be that things are looking up for Chuck ? Deadline.com's Nellie Andreeva breaks down the current on the bubble series at the broadcast networks, including NBC's Chuck . "Last year, NBC’s Chuck got an 11th hour reprieve, clinching a partial 3rd-season order on Sunday afternoon before upfront week," writes Andreeva. "This time around, its fate will be decided earlier if the show’s producers get their way. Several days ago, creators Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak pitched NBC their vision for Season 4 and producing studio Warner Bros asked the network for a quick resolution so the series could keep its writing staff. Even with NBC brass happy with their drama development, the spy dramedy’s chances of renewal are considered very good -- and certainly a lot better than last year when a sponsorship deal with Subway sealed the renewal. With the show rising in the ratings this week and fans staging rallies tomor...