More "Chuck"? Yes, please!

You know, my hopes have already been raised and dashed by that dastardly rumor that "Chuck" would come back as soon as the end of October (which is, of course, just about here, with no "Chuck"), but I'm certain this time that this just-as-good information is satisfactual.

With another of its new shows crashing early - this time "Trauma," poor Derek Luke deserves much, much better - it seems that NBC has already ordered six more episodes of "Chuck," upping the second season order from 13 to 19 (and, if enough people tune in, perhaps maybe even 22 - hey, I can dream right?)

No word yet that it would come back any earlier than the originally planned March, but the way things stand now, it would probably be best to just wait until then. NBC has the Winter Olympics, so if "Chuck" were brought back in, say, January, it would just get preempted for the second half of February and perhaps lose any new viewers it may have picked up. Methinks, all things, considered, waiting until March would be just fine.

Whenever it comes, however, more "Chuck" is just sensationally good news. Stay tuned for more details as I get them.

The word is also out today on when we'll get to see another of my favorite comedies, but probably one that should be off the air already.

How in the world "Scrubs" has survived for what will be its ninth season beginning Dec. 1 with two episodes on ABC, I'll never know, but I do know that when it returns this time it won't look much like anything we've seen in the past.

As far as I know, all the regular cast members except for Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley) and perhaps Carla (Judy Reyes) have mostly moved on and will only be seen in brief recurring spots from time to time (but it sure is nice to see Neil Flynn each week on "The Middle.") Instead, we'll find Dr. Cox with a new crop of med students to berate and perhaps break down.

I'm all for a fresh start, and I like this show enough to give it another chance this winter, but the main problem is that when they tried to introduce a new cast of characters last year, they all bombed (and I assume will all be gone.) I mean, when you have veryfunnyman Aziz Ansari and you give him absolutely nothing funny to say, you're certainly going in the wrong direction.

But, enough of that. Like I said, I'll at least tune in to see if any of the magic still exists. And all I have except for that today is a couple of videos that caught my eye this morning.

First up is a deleted scene from J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek," which I assume will be included with the DVD release coming Nov. 17. Like most people, I loved the flick, and am almost certain it will end up on my top 10 for the year. Enjoy.


Star Trek - DVD Bonus Footage

And finally comes something that's, unfortunately, at least as depressing as it is enjoyable. If you somehow haven't seen Joss Whedon's short-lived series "Firefly" or the improbable follow-up flick "Serenity," you've missed one of the truly great characters of the last 10 years or so in Nathan Fillion's Captain Mal Reynolds. Watch them as soon as you can, and just to stir some memories, here's Fillion donning the familiar garb for a recent episode of "Castle," which I just can't bring myself to watch because I already absorb way too much just-above-average TV and just don't have time or energy for something that looks so thoroughly banal. Anyways, enjoy the clip, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.

Coming soon to a home near you, the best movie of 2009

Though I'm not naive enough to think it will ever be enough to kill off reality TV, sitcoms have started to make a real comeback in primetime TV. And, amazingly, there's even a few new ones good enough that I tune in each week (at least until they get canceled.)

Two that have caught my eye run back-to-back tonight on ABC, first "The Middle" and then "Modern Family." Sure, "The Middle" is a direct and not quite as good ripoff of that show that had "Malcolm" in it too, but I like seeing Patricia Heaton and Neil Flynn together, and the humor is pretty spot on. "Modern Family," as it wades each week into uncomfortable situations, is even better.

And since both of those shows have (I think) gotten at least close to full-season orders already, ABC is ordering up more comedy, and thankfully with veryfunnylady Judy Greer, a k a Kitty Sanchez.

The network has signed her up to star in a series based on the book "I'm With Stupid," which would star her as a Manhattanite who has a fling with a park ranger while on safari in South Africa, and then finds the ranger has tracked her down in New York. Elaine Szewczyk, who wrote the book, is on board as a writer, and it seems like there could definitely be some funny there.

And speaking of definitely funny, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" almost always delivers in the foulest way possible, and we'll soon be getting it a lot more often.

Comedy Central has just snatched up the syndication rights for the F/X show, which is now in its fifth season and is signed for at least two more. And since Comedy Central is apparently paying about $700,000 per episode, I'd imagine they're gonna be showing "Sunny" as often as NBC does that dirty rat Jay Leno. Huzzah to that!

But before I got distracted by all that today, this was supposed to be all about the DVD release of my favorite movie of 2009 so far, which is coming Dec. 15.

Though Kathyrn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" and Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's "Sugar" have each spent time at the top this year, the enduring champ I'm referring to is Quentin Tarantino's wildly entertaining "Inglourious Basterds." It has its faults, for sure, but for vivid storytelling there just hasn't been a better flick this year, and though I don't buy nearly as many DVDS as I used to, I'll definitely spring for the two-disc set of this one (and then watch as probably at least five more "special" editions come out.) Here's what you'll get with the two-disc "Inglourious Basterds":

* Extended and alternate scenes
* Nation's Pride - The film within the film in its entirety
* A roundtable discussion with Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and film historian/critic Elvis Mitchell
* The making of Nation's Pride
* The Original Inglorious Bastards - a salute to the original 1978 film
* A conversation with veteran actor Rod Taylor
* Rod Taylor on Victoria Bitters, the Australian beer
* Quentin Tarantino's Camera Angel
* Hi Sallys - Gag Reel
* Film poster gallery tour with Elvis Mitchell
* Inglourious Basterds poster gallery
* Digital Copy of Inglourious Basterds

Some of that is surely filler, but most of it has to do with QT's love of movies, and I'm sure I'll watch it all at least once. The only thing missing is any kind of featurette about the music, which as usual just fits with the flick perfectly (I find David Bowie's "Cat People" just popping into my head at all the strangest times.)

And I'll leave you today with something from Eli Roth's twitter feed that I found to be pretty funny. The Basterds themselves, and especially the Bear Jew, were easily my least favorite chapter of QT's flick, but I still liked this suggestion for Halloween. Enjoy, and have a perfectly passable Wednesday. Peace out.