Your Favorite Shows in the Palm of Your Hand? Plus, 'Everybody Hates Hugo!'

Apple made a huge announcement yesterday, and it affects some of your favorite shows. The company, in conjunction with ABC and Disney, is offering episodes for download with their iTunes and iPod software. It also announced a new iPod with a color screen and video capabilities that will play the episodes. Now, you're able to download episodes that you missed of Lost, Desperate Housewives, Night Stalker, That's So Raven, and The Suite Life of Jack & Cody so far, and play them back with a handheld iPod (or on your computer). Episodes are available for $1.99 each, or you can buy an entire already aired season for around $35 (Note: Downloads are only available in the United States right now). Each show's episodes appear on iTunes the day after they air on ABC or Disney. And more shows could be added in the future according to the AP. NBC has been in talks with companies like Apple about adding new outlets for their programming. CBS, however, had no comment on yesterday's announcement. So, will viewers take advantage of this new technology? Apple revolutionized the way we listen to and purchase music, but watching television on a small handheld medium is not the same as listening to music on it. I downloaded an episode of Lost yesterday just to check the quality and see how long it would take to download. I watched parts of the episode on my computer and the quality is awesome, and the download only took about ten to fifteen minutes with my DSL connection. The small price per an episode fee will keep me coming back if I miss episodes in the future. I certainly won't replace my normal television viewing with this new feature, but it will serve as a great way for viewers like myself to catch up on episodes that I miss without having to wait for reruns or DVDs. I only wish UPN would start offering episodes of Veronica Mars. The show has a young-skewing audience that tends to embrace new technologies and features. I'm sure many already have iTunes, so it would be easy for them to download and watch episodes to catch up on the serialized drama, and thus hopefully add viewers. Hopefully, more networks and programs will follow suit, and we'll all be able to catch up on our favorite shows at our convenience. Many viewers already download episodes illegally, so it only makes sense for television to catch up with the music industry and offer their product for download as well. What do you guys think? Will you download episodes through iTunes? Should more networks and shows add themselves to the list? Leave a comment with your thoughts.

Last night's episode of Lost ("Everybody Hates Hugo") seemed to stall a little compared to previous weeks. The story didn't advance much, and we learned very little about the hatch and the other survivors of Oceanic Flight 815. It started out with an interesting Hurley dream. There was a picture of a missing Walt on one of the Dharma Initiative milk cartons that Hurley was drinking in his dream. We also had a Korean-speaking Hurley, a man in a chicken suit (which we learned had to do with his pre-lottery job), and an ominous warning from Jin that everything was about to change. I normally enjoy the Hurley-centric episodes, but this one was not as entertaining as others. It seems that winning the lottery didn't just jinx Hurley, it also cost him his best friend and turned a lot of people against him. I don't blame him for not wanting to be in charge of the food distribution because he already knew where it could lead. It was a no-win situation. I thought his solution was great, though. Everyone got to enjoy the food together without someone else trying to ration and police it. I really enjoyed the closing scenes with everyone enjoying the moment.

Did anyone else think that the place where the other survivors of flight 815 were staying looked like the mysterious hatch? If it's not, then how many concrete structures are there on this island? And if it is the same hatch, then how large is this thing because Jack and co. have not come across anyone else in the hatch. Also, what happened to the other survivors from the back of the plane? There were originally 23, but not any more. And what about the mysterious "Others" that took Walt? We haven't heard from them since last season's finale. It was nice to have Rose back, and we learned that her husband is still alive with the other back-of-the-plane survivors. Overall, a good episode, but not as powerful or gripping as the others from this season.

About Last Night... ABC won the first hour of the night with its comedy block of George Lopez and Freddie, followed by Fox's MLB coverage and NBC's E-Ring. At 9, ABC stayed in the lead with Lost, followed by Criminal Minds on CBS, and MLB coverage on Fox. UPN's Veronica Mars beat the WB's Related to snag fifth place. The final hour of the night went to CBS's CSI: NY, followed by ABC's Invasion, and Law & Order on NBC. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - Sydney teams up with new agent Thomas Grace to track down another agent who is supposedly working against the U.S. while Dixon helps Sloane find a cure for Nadia on ABC's Alias. Chris gets in a fight with the school bully on Everybody Hates Chris on UPN. Fox continues its coverage of the NLCS with game 2 of the Astros and the Cardinals.

@9 p.m. - The CSIs investigate an apparent mass suicide of a small cult on CBS's CSI. Amy deals with the fact that Ephram is living with her brother Bright and secret crush Reid on Everwood on the WB.

@10 p.m. - Roselyn Sanchez joins the cast of Without A Trace as the team works to locate a missing young prostitute tonight on CBS. A patient wakes up from a nine-year coma on NBC's ER.


QUICK CUTS

*Good news for several new series. CBS is ordering full seasons of How I Met Your Mother, Ghost Whisperer, and Criminal Minds. Both How I Met Your Mother and Ghost Whisperer have made strong gains in the younger demographics for the eye network. Criminal Minds is giving the network solid numbers in its tough Wednesday slot against Lost. Over at Fox, both The War at Home and Bones will stick around for a full season. Both series have helped the network get off to an improved start over last year. They will both return after Fox's coverage of the MLB playoffs.

*And finally, there are conflicting reports today about the future of Fox's The Simple Life. One report says the show is done for good because of feuding stars, and former best friends, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. Another says that Fox is finished with the show because they don't have a place for it on the mid-season schedule, but The Simple Life's distributor (20th Century Fox TV) is shopping the show around to other networks. Either way, don't look for the show to return any time soon.

That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for CSI, Alias, and Everwood. Plus, all new editions of About Last Night and Primetime Pass and all the latest television news!