1. HOMELAND
The best new series of the year is Showtime's twisty nail-biter of a psychological thriller, an emotionally intense cat-and-mouse game between two damaged souls: Damian Lewis as Nicholas Brody, a Marine POW who may have been turned by terrorists during eight years in Iraqi captivity, and Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison, the unstable CIA analyst who breaks all the rules to get under his skin — and at times under the sheets. (Bringing new meaning to undercover agent). The actors are as electrifying as the storytelling in this taut tale of homeland insecurity, which also features a marvelously restrained Mandy Patinkin as Carrie's melancholy mentor and a revelatory Morena Baccarin as Brody's understandably conflicted wife. Homeland comes from the veteran producers of 24, who have lost none of their knack for sustained suspense, but within this more realistic framework have been able to concoct a thoughtful and gripping meditation on the human toll of the war on terror.
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Every week, editors Adam Bryant and Natalie Abrams satisfy your need for TV scoop. Please send all questions to mega_scoop@tvguide.com.
Will Mark and Lexie ever get back together on Grey's Anatomy? -- Jeannie
NATALIE: Just because Jackson and Lexie broke up doesn't mean that Lexie will go running back to Mark, particularly since he isn't single at the moment. Yes, Julia will still very much be in the picture when Grey's returns in January, though don't expect Lexie to throw any more softballs at her chest -- not literal softballs anyway.
Can you tell us anything about next week's Bones? I heard that David Boreanaz killed it! — montgomerysloan, via Twitter
ADAM: How did you hear that? (Do tell.) I can confirm that Booth will...
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Jeers to Once Upon a Time for trapping Giancarlo Esposito in a one-dimensional role.
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The dazzlingly versatile actor deserves an Emmy for his quietly riveting work as drug kingpin Gustavo Fring on Breaking Bad. So what is he doing on ABC's featherweight fantasy as the Magic Mirror on evil queen Lana Parilla's wall (and a toadying reporter named Sidney in the ...
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Every week, editors Adam Bryant and Natalie Abrams satisfy your need for TV scoop. Please send all questions to mega_scoop@tvguide.com.
Is there a chance that Lexie and Mark will reunite on Grey's Anatomy? —Jessica
NATALIE: Mark still clearly cares about Lexie, which won't go unnoticed by Jackson's mother (Debbie Allen), who makes an appearance in this week Grey's. "Jackson is dealing with that in a mature way, being aware of it, but not being obsessed with it," Jesse Williams says. "Jackson is learning that he can't control everything." Still, "Mark is doing a fairly admirable job about staying in his place. He really cares a lot about Jackson as a student and a surgeon."
What's up for Catherine in her last season on CSI? — Meg
ADAM: The show is cooking up lots of stories for her final season, most significantly a potential...
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Casa Tranquila, my eye! (Or, rather, Gus's eye.)
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