Benson Wants a New Partner? Plus the Scrubies, News from 'Mars' and Nielsen Wednesday

Elliot (Meloni) comes to Olivia's (Hargitay) aide after she's cut in the throat (photo courtesy nbc.com)

Was last night's episode of Law & Order: SVU intense or what? Lou "La Bamba" Diamond Phillips makes for one nasty bad guy! I think my heart completely sunk when Elliot reached the little boy and he was already dead. After hearing how Phillips' character was beyond psychological help, I was glad when the sniper got him. Admittedly, the big stabbing/cutting scene was over hyped, but in this case, I'm glad it was because it meant that the episode's other secrets remained that way. I'm glad Olivia is OK. What is going on between Elliot and Olivia? I get that they put each other above the job, and thus, compromised the job, but the real question is why? Is there something between these two that goes beyond the normal partner relationship? Every time you read an article with either actor they'll swear up and down that Olivia and Elliot will never hook up, but they don't seem to rule out possible attraction between the two. Did Olivia decide that she needs a new partner because she's too close to Elliot and it's affecting her judgment? Or, does she have feelings for him that she knows she can't have? I was certainly getting that vibe from Elliot, particularly when he was talking to Huang. His real anger seemed to be aimed at himself for letting his feelings for Olivia cross the partner line. I got a similar vibe from Liv when she was pointing her gun at Phillips as he held one to Elliot's head. The way she tearfully said that she would have done the same for Elliot just seemed a little more than partners to me. This is definitely an interesting development if nothing else. I have a feeling that these two will never act on their feelings (if there are any there to begin with), but it's fun that the show is toying with it for now. I can't imagine an actual hook-up being good for the show, but raising the sexual tension could make things very interesting. We'll just have to see. What did you think about last night's shocker? What do you think is going on between Liv and Elliot? Leave me a comment with your thoughts.


Did last night's episode of Scrubs seems a little out of order to anyone else? There was no mention of Carla's pregnancy and they finally acknowledged JD's shaved head from a couple of episodes back. It was weird. Anyway, I loved the way JD's shaved head got him in with the religious group. What more can you say about an episode that manages to incorporate JD getting Turk's butt (to the tune of "Brick House" no less), a frat costume party gone very bad, references to Gilmore Girls, Dr. Cox finding his happy place, Janitor's evil eye plan, a Elliot/Keith and Perry/Jordan double date, a jealous JD, and Jordan identically dressing Perry and Keith? So much awesomeness packed into one half hour, I think my head is going to explode! Anyway, here's a look at last night's funniest, greatest and all around awesome lines.

The Scrubies
"You don't like Cox?" Elliot to Jordan on last names they dislike
"Oh, I love Cox." Jordan
"Greatest conversation ever!" The Todd

"What are you two going to do? Stay up late and eat raw cookie dough and pinky swear that your diet will start tomorrow?" Dr. Cox to Turk regarding Turk and JD's night off

"Mothers and daughters: they speak so fast, but they speak so true." Turk regarding Gilmore Girls

"I'm so mad at Lorelai, I can't even talk right now!" JD to Turk regarding Gilmore Girls

"I am so g-darned pissed right now." JD to Dr. Cox after he thinks that Dr. Cox is being nice to the interns and not him

"You handed it off to me like a tiny yellow baton." JD (regarding Dr. Cox's pencil) to Dr. Cox after he thinks he sees Dr. Cox being nice to the interns

There's a look at this week's Scrubies. As always, if you have a line that you would like to nominate for a Scrubie, drop me a comment and I'll publish it in a future edition. Also, you can always leave a comment on anything Scrubs related.

Well, Gilmore Girls finally returned last night. I enjoy this show, so I decided to start TiVo-ing it, but I won't get a chance to watch the episodes until the weekend. Here's a link to TV Guide's Watercooler (and its new blog format!) with all the dish on last night's outing.

About Last Night...Fox grabbed the first hour of the night with American Idol, followed by CBS' NCIS and ABC comedies According to Jim (r) and Hope & Faith. At 9, Fox maintained its lead with House, followed by CBS' The Unit and NBC comedies Scrubs and Teachers. The final hour of the night went to NBC's Law & Order: SVU, followed by CBS' CSI: Miami (r) and ABC's Boston Legal (r). For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - CBS' The Amazing Race moves to its new night and time! Yay! Tonight, the stress of the race gets to a lot of the teams as some get lost on their way to the next clue in Sicily. Over on UPN, the models tackle a Covergirl commercial that tests their improvisational skills and one of them wins a guest role on Veronica Mars. I've seen advanced clips of this episode and it doesn't look like the girls master the commercial too well, especially Sara (who incorporates a very un-Covergirl like image into her ad) and Brooke (who lets her stress affect her take). Elsewhere, Jade takes a rap too far at Furonda's expense and Nnenna continues to deal with her boyfriend drama. Over on NBC, look for a special edition of Deal or No Deal.

@9 p.m. - Remember how ya'll trusted Veronica Mars creator/executive producer Rob Thomas last week when he said that last week's episode was one of his favorites and it totally turned out to be awesome? Well, then you're in for a real treat tonight because this episode is Thomas' absolute favorite of the season so far! Tonight, Veronica works with Weevil to bring Felix's killer to justice (NOTE: this is the last Wednesday episode as the show will be moving to Tuesday nights next week). Also, while you're watching the fabulous Mars tonight, don't forget to film you and your friends watching it for a chance to be on UPN during a future episode of the series. Click HERE for all the details and be sure to read today's Quick Cuts for more Mars morsels. Over on ABC, Hurley asks for Libby's help when he begins to believe that the island is having a strange effect on him on Lost (NOTE: this episode runs until 10:05 p.m.). NBC switches Heist to an earlier time.

@10 p.m. - NBC moves Law & Order back to its original slot. Over on ABC, the tragic, accidental death of a newlywed husband prompts a wife to discover posthumously that her husband had been concealing a year-long battle with cancer on The Evidence (NOTE: Starts at 10:05 p.m.).



QUICK CUTS

*Veronica Mars creator/executive producer Rob Thomas is answering fan questions again at TVGuide.com. Today's Insider column has the answers to some of your burning questions including what Kendall was doing in Duncan's shower, if we'll see Veronica's mom again, scoop on Neptune High's upcoming prom and much more! Click on over to TVGuide.com for all the scoop on this awesome show straight from the source.

*American Idol castoff Lisa Tucker will make a guest appearance on an upcoming episode of Fox's The O.C. Tucker, a real-life Orange County resident, will return to the fictional O.C. just in time for the Harbour School's prom. Look for her episode to air April 27th on Fox. In other casting news, actress Parker Posey will make a three-episode guest appearance on ABC's Boston Legal. She'll play "a recent transfer from another firm and a blackberry-carrying politico looking to make partner," according to the press release. ABC hasn't released any air dates for her episodes.

*Feeling a little behind when it comes to your favorite ABC shows? Well, the network is here to help. Look for recap specials for Lost, Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy to air before the shows enter into May sweeps and their respective season finales. The network plans to air the Housewives and Anatomy refreshers on Sunday, April 23rd in each show's respective slot. Look for the Lost refresher to air April 26th in its normal slot.

*South Park, Battlestar Gallactica, House, The Shield and Boston Legal all have one thing in common - they're the most recent recipients of a Peabody Award. The awards honor the best of broadcasting in 2005 as determined by a panel consisting of industry executives, critics and "experts in culture and the arts." The University of Georgia has given out the awards for the past 65 years. This year's recipients will receive their statues when Jon Stewart hosts the ceremony in June.

*And finally, it's Nielsen Wednesday! CBS once again won the week in total viewers and Fox took the 18-49 crown. The Eye network was led by CSI (#3), Without a Trace (#7), CSI: Miami (#8) and Survivor (#9). American idol (#1, #2), Grey's Anatomy (#4), Desperate Housewives (#5), House (#6), and a three-way tie for the ninth spot between two episodes of Deal or No Deal and Lost rounded out the top 10. For more of last week's ratings and the full top 20, visit USA Today.

That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for something a little different. With The Amazing Race moving to Wednesdays and joining Lost, Veronica Mars and the Idol and Model moments, it's all too cumbersome for one edition. So, look for a special Amazing Race edition earlier in the day every Thursday and then the regular edition at its regularly scheduled time with thoughts on Lost, Veronica Mars and the Idol and Model moments. Plus, all the latest television news!


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