What's ahead on season two of terrific "Treme"?

I suppose it's somehow appropriate that as I write this, there are storm sirens going off here in Macon. Nothing serious right here, as far as I can tell, but not the greatest thing to wake up to on a Saturday morning.

Much more pleasant are thoughts about David Simon's "Treme," which is surely to be overshadowed by the premiere of HBO's "Game of Thrones" tomorrow night (my DVR is ready), but makes its season 2 premiere seven days later.

If you missed out on season one, you're apparently far from alone. Not surprisingly, given how slow the show can unfold, it was just as slow to catch on with viewers (I don't have the numbers in front of me, but they definitely weren't great.) But the same was true with Simon's "The Wire," and well, hopefully we all know how great that turned out to be.

No other show that I can think of debuted with such an immediate and thoroughly organic sense of time and place, and then let its stories unfold at a rhythm perfectly suited to the city it chronicles. And those stories, a mix of horror and hope in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, can be thoroughly engrossing if you give them the time to suck you in.

And here, courtesy of the Hollywood Reporter, is a taste of what's ahead on the new season, followed by a preview video from HBO with, of course, some simply sensational music.

Per THR, season two jumps ahead more than a year after Katrina, a time when "crime is up, help is slow, tourism is way down and outsiders with money are pouring in to profit from the reconstruction." Though there's apparently mention of the savior (Drew Brees) that would finally deliver the city gridiron glory, that's in the future.

Here's what's ahead for key characters, per THR, with the very best news of all being that the great Kim Dickens will give up on the Big Apple and return to New Orleans for season two (AND, PLEASE NOTE, IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN SEASON ONE, BUT WANT TO, THERE'S A RATHER GINORMOUS SPOILER IN PARAGRAPH ONE, SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO SKIP THAT ONE!)

As Season 2 kicks off, we find Toni (Melissa Leo) still trying to fight the good fight but still hurt by the suicide of her husband, Creighton (John Goodman). Daughter Sofia (India Ennenga, now a full-time cast member) has seemingly absorbed her dead father’s rage and despair over the state of New Orleans, and that puts additional pressure on Toni.

Antoine (Wendell Pierce) has designs on starting his own band; Albert (Clarke Peters) is dumped out of the bar he revamped when the owner returns; Albert’s son Delmond (Rob Brown) begins to feel the allure of New Orleans again when his fellow New Yorkers disparage the culture; and Janette (Kim Dickens) also tires of the Big Apple as she works under a demanding but talented chef (Anthony Bourdain has been added to the writing staff, so the kitchen banter and attention to detail is exceptional).

Meanwhile, DJ Davis (Steve Zahn) is still pissing off his bosses at the radio station, still railing against the dying of the culture, but at least he’s got a blossoming relationship with Annie Tee (the lovely and talented Lucia Micarelli). Sonny (Michiel Huisman), noted screw-up and Annie’s ex, takes one step forward and two back, as expected. Lt. Colson (David Morse, who also gets upped to full-time cast member) continues to deal with the police department’s handling of crime in the city. And a newcomer from Dallas, Nelson Hidalgo (Jon Seda), adds to the political intrigue and race to reshape New Orleans.

Sounds like exactly more of the same to me, so I can only say bring it on. Keep an eye out for this beginning April 24 at 10 p.m., following "Game of Thrones." And, as promised, I'll leave you with this brief season two preview of sorts featuring a slammin' brass band. Peace out.

Season 2 Preview

It's official: David Simon hits New Orleans, and, yes, the X-men will go on forever

Actually, before we get into all that, there are two bits of news out there that offer varying degrees of promise.

First of all, there was apparently a screening last night for movie executives of Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus" in an attempt to finally find Heath Ledger's last flick an American distributor even before it screens out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival. This is easily bordering on pathetic, but at this point, whatever it takes to get this into a theater anywhere near my little corner of the world will be welcome. Stay tuned ...

And in great TV news, Mindy Kaling, a k a Kelly on "The Office," has signed her own deal with NBC. Kaling, who along with playing Kelly has been writing for "The Office" for years now, will continue to work on that show next season as she simultaneously develops a new comedy in which she would also star.

Among the episodes she's responsible for is the one that's still my single favorite, "Diwali," a k a the "Hindu Halloween." Here's hoping this leads to something seriously funny, because TV could certainly use it.

But here today it's mostly about the return of David Simon to HBO, which has been kicked around for awhile but is now official as it has picked up his pilot for "Treme" and will be taking it to series.

Though Simon has stressed this won't be making " 'The Wire' twice," it's clear that what he's cooking up with fellow "Homicide" scribe Eric Overmyer will be just as political and probably just as often maddeningly entertaining as that scarring portrait of Charm City was. Per Simon:

"It will be uplifting at points, and may make viewers a little angry at points," Simon said. "And at another point it will make viewers a little depressed."

And best of all, the cast will prominently feature two vets of "The Wire" and even a former "Homicide" beat cop. New Orleans native Wendell Pierce, a k a Bunk Moreland, will play a struggling trombonist and Khandi Alexander - who starred on Simon's "The Corner" - will play his ex-wife, who owns a bar. Amazingly enough, Clarke Peters - a k a Lester Freamon - will play the leader of a Mardi Gras Indian tribe. And rounding out the cast will be Steve Zahn as a DJ with "anger management issues," and even Melissa Leo as a civil rights lawyer.

So, now that it's going to series, when will we get to see any of this? Well, in a uniquely New Orleans twist, though the pilot has been shot, work on other episodes can't begin until after hurricane season, meaning the show probably won't hit the air until next spring.

Here's hoping it's not delayed any more than that (though that at least puts off the date I have to start paying for HBO again), since as anyone who watched "The Wire" - easily the best cop show ever - knows, Simon and company will have a lot to say, and about more than the Crescent City itself. Again, per Simon:

"Look at what happened down there after Katrina. A lot of things in which New Orleans depended on and trusted turned out to be wholly undependable and untrustworthy. The governing institutions were supposed to monitor things of actual construct like the levees and the pumping stations. That could be an allegory for what we Americans presumed about our financial institutions, and the governing bodies that were supposed to monitor them."

Amen, brother.

"X-Men Origins: Deadpool"? Yawn

Given how much mad cash "Wolverine" scooped up in its opening weekend, I guess the question really wasn't whether or not Twentieth Century Fox would make another "Origins" spinoff, but which mutant?

Well, the answer is in, and unfortunately it isn't Taylor Kitsch's "Gambit." Instead, Ryan Reynolds will get to be the star as the company has greenlit a "Deadpool" movie instead.

Now, I have no problem at all with the concept of a Deadpool flick. The character, a mercenary who submits himself to the Weapon X genetic alteration experiment as he's dying of cancer, is certainly a worthy movie subject. My only beef is with Reynolds himself.

And it's not really just that he can't act, but instead that to me he's pretty much a "nonpresence," if that's even anything resembling an actual word. Floating through good movies like "Adventureland" and simply wretched ones like "Smokin' Aces," he usually just makes no impression at all, though I have to concede he was very funny in the underrated Watergate spoof "Dick."

And just in case you doubt that the "X-Men" will continue to rule the universe, along with "Deadpool" there's also already a Japan-set "Wolverine" sequel, a "Magneto" movie starring Sir Ian McKellen, and Josh Schwartz's sure-to-be-cheeky "X-Men: First Class" all in varying stages of development. Sheesh.


Several looks at "Ponyo"

Though we won't get to see Hayao Miyazaki's "Ponyo on the Cliff By the Sea" in the U.S. until at least August 14 (and with its heavily Disney voice cast, hopefully EVERYWHERE), the picture above and several other stills you can find here just make me - and hopefully someone else - smile. You can tell from all the vibrant colors that this one is clearly intended for the kids, and that's just fine with me. Bring it on already!

And finally, in sticking loosely with the theme of the day and just because I like it, I'll leave you with this clip of the Treme Brass Band performing "I'll Fly Away" in a jazz funeral procession through the streets of New Orleans. Peace out.

A behind-the-scenes look at AMC's take on "The Prisoner"

It would be good enough that AMC is simply ponying up for a third (and presumably fourth and fifth) season of "Mad Men" for this summer, but I'm also becoming more and more confident that what's coming with it - a six-episode remake of "The Prisoner" - will also far from completely suck.

On its surface, the idea hardly seems like a good one. The original series, starring and co-created by the recently late Patrick McGoohan as Number Six, was, well, extremely British (so is "Absolutely Fabulous" in a more than slightly different way, but that one's coming to U.S. TV next fall too, unfortunately.)

For anyone who's never seen it, McGoohan played a former secret agent working for the British during the Cold War who resigns on the first episode and is then kidnapped and held hostage in an isolated spot known only as the Village. In the original series, he's grilled by a series of interrogators known collectively as Number Two, even though they were played by a different person for each episode.

And therein comes the first big change for AMC's model: Number Two will be played for all six episodes by Sir Ian McKellen (coincidentally enough, I was just watching Sir Ian's explanation of his acting technique last night on "Extras": "How did I know where to stand? They told me." Exceptionally funny.) Number Six will be played by none other than Jesus himself, a k a Jim Caveizel.

Despite these modifications, I'm still fairly confident this will be good after watching this video from AMC, which shows that Namibia serves as the setting for The Village and then the crew moved onto Cape Town (rough life!) for the rest of the shoot. As long as this doesn't turn into an exercise in torture (why is seeing someone getting tortured considered entertaining? I'll never understand it, but I digress ...), this should make for a fantastic summertime diversion. Enjoy the video, and to watch all 17 episodes of the original series, courtesy of AMC, click here (though every time I have tried so far it has crashed my Firefox.)



David Simon's "Treme" rapidly taking shape

I probably should have led with this news about "Treme," the new HBO pilot from "The Wire" creator David Simon, especially since it is now set to star one of my favorite actors.

The series about musicians in New Orleans had already attracted two members of "The Law" from "The Wire" (more on that in a second), and now Steve Zahn and Kim Dickens have also signed on. Zahn (who will always be known to me as Glenn Michaels) will play Davis Rogan, a street dancer, local radio DJ, band member and New Orleans native with "anger issues" ( I can see that in my mind already). Dickens (Matt Saracen's mom on the current [and still sensational] season of "Friday Night Lights" but also Jeanie Stubbs on "Deadwood") will play a chef who has opened her own restaurant.

Joining this duo will be easily two of my favorite "Wire" vets, "Bunk" Moreland and Lester Freamon. Wendell Pierce, a New Orleans native, will play a jazz musician who's fallen on hard times after Katrina and who still has a soft spot for his ex-wife, played by "CSI Miami" star Khandi Alexander. Even better, Clarke Peters will be playing a Mardi Gras Indian chief who's trying to bring the members of his tribe back to the city.

So far this is only being put together as a pilot, but I can't imagine HBO wouldn't take anything short of at least a full season from Simon, especially with this cast behind it. I cancelled my HBO after the end of the first season of "True Blood," but I'll definitely re-up if and when this ever really comes together. Peace out.

David Simon's "Treme" will be a "Wire" family reunion

Even with the simply sublime "Mad Men" back on the air and clearly still in top form and a slew of pretty great shows ("Pushing Daisies" would have to be the one I'm most jazzed about) finally set to return for hopefully full seasons, the end of HBO's "The Wire" has just left a huge void.

Luckily for us viewers, "Wire" mastermind David Simon is a man who likes to work and HBO is smart enough to hold on to its best talents. "Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball will be back Sept. 7 with what should be a satisfying vampire series in "True Blood" with Anna Paquin, and in even better news, Simon is getting back into the game too in a big way - and with a lot of familiar faces.

For what is so far only a pilot (though it surely won't end up that way), Simon has moved his sights from Charm City to another American city in distress, New Orleans, where there's at least as much crime and corruption to work with as there was (and still is) in Baltimore.

"Treme," which takes its name from a historic African-American neighborhood in the Crescent City, will take a look at the lives of musicians and others struggling to get by in what Hurricane Katrina left them to deal with. "Wire" creative folks Eric Overmyer and Nina Noble are on board as executive producers and, in even better news (I know I'm burying the lead here), "Wire" cops Bunk and Lester and "The Corner" resident Fran Boyd are all set to star! (And though I try to use them sparingly, that's certainly worthy of an exclamation point.)

Wendell Pierce will play Antoine Batiste, an accomplished jazz trombonist who is now scratching for gigs, trying to support a live-in girlfriend and a new baby. Khandi Alexander, who after playing Fran on "The Corner" went on to star on "CSI: Miami" for seven years (though I can't say I've ever tuned in for an episode), will play Ladonna Batiste, the mother of Antoine's other two children, who is single-handedly keeping her bar afloat.

Clarke Peters, a k a superdetective Lester Freamon, will play Albert Lambreaux, a big chief of the White Feather Nation trying to bring the (Mardi Gras Indian, I assume) tribe's members home.

As you can probably tell from those few details alone, Simon's ready for this and should deliver something great. As he did with Baltimore on "The Wire," Simon told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that "Treme" would reach beyond the music scene to explore political corruption, the public housing controversy, the crippled criminal-justice system, clashes between police and Mardi Gras Indians, and the struggle to regain the tourism industry after the storm.

"It's basically a post-Katrina history of the city. It will be rooted in events that everybody knows," Simon told the paper. "What it's not going to be is a happy stroll through David Simon's record collection. It should not be a tourism slide show. If we do it right, it (will be) about why New Orleans matters."

All I can say is a resounding bring it on, ASAP!

AMC moving from '60s to '70s

Among the many charms of AMC's "Mad Men" (and man was that second episode of season two great) is the attention to detail it pays in reconstructing the world of early '60s New York City and its ad men.

Now, in its search for more original programming, the cable channel is looking to the '70s to turn Francis Ford Coppola's "The Conversation" into a serial series.

Writers Christopher McQuarrie ("The Usual Suspects" and upcoming "Valkyrie") and Erik Jendresen ("Band of Brothers") have been hired to develop the project, which like the flick will be set in the early '70s. No word yet on who will attempt to fill the shoes of Gene Hackman as electronic surveillance expert Harry Caul, but given the dangers to privacy we deal with now the show could turn out be both timely and very entertaining.

Just as HBO passed on "Mad Men" (and then fired all the folks who made that rather astoundingly bad decision), ABC passed on this idea from the same team a few years ago. Even more interestingly, before that - way back in 1995 - producer Tony Krantz also tried to pitch it to NBC with Kyle MacLachlan in the lead. Talk about persistence!

Great TV news all around, but now I have to go to my actual paying job. Peace out.