"1, 2, 3, 4...Meeeat Combo"

° I won't bother rhapsodising about it too much, but if you are a Buffy fan and you're not reading the Buffy: Season Eight comic, you are missing out. Yes, there have been a few jarring choices already (spoiler!), but on the whole it captures the feel of the TV show really well and it fills that Buffy-shaped hole we all have in our hearts like nothing else could. Read it! Read the Serenity ones too! Until Dollhouse comes along where the hell else are you going to get your Whedon fix?

° Now that the Final 12 have been announced I think I'll be talking about American Idol in more detail starting next week. All I'll say for this week is that David Cook was my favourite by a mile, I didn't rate Castro's 'Hallelujah' at all and I absolutely can not stand Amanda Overmyer. I have other things to talk about, though, so next week...

° I did think of writing a long - loooooooooooonnnng - piece on why 'The Constant' (s04e05) was such a great episode of Lost, but from all I've read on the internet this week it looks like it doesn't need much explaining. Everyone loved it, and rightfully so. What I will say quickly is that one reason I loved it so much that I haven't seen people going gooey over is the way it toyed with the structure of the show so seamlessly. When we saw Desmond wake up in what would usually be called the flashback section of the story it was a moment of great craft. In contrast to what I see as the rather awkward and often clumsy use of the flash-forwards, it was a moment that connected effortlessly and immediately with the audience while still managing to stay relevant to the current going-ons of the Island. Not relying on non-sequitur surprises like the flash-forwards of 'The Economist' (s04e03) and 'Eggtown' (s04e04), it was the first time this season we've seen both sections of the show pulling together to propel a single story and it made a huge difference to the quality. More episodes need to stick to this pattern.

° Ads are suddenly appearing everywhere for new shows. At last! Within the next few weeks we should finally have Dirty Sexy Money, Bionic Woman, Gossip Girl, Pushing Daisies, new Desperate Housewives and new Nip/Tuck, just to mention a few. You should always keep an eye on this page to make sure you don't miss anything that matters to you. If it's something I like then I'll remind you here, of course, but if Bones or Criminal Minds is your bag, then you're going to have to go it alone, bud. Sorry.