Anyway, make sure you’re ready for EUREKA on JULY 9th, 2010! It’s COMING BACK.

See the trailers below for details!

After watching Welcome Back, Carter (the mid-season premiere of Eureka), I have to say I’m hoping to see Andy again, even if it’s just for one more episode some time down the road.

Welcome Back, Carter takes off where the series left off at mid-season: Carter out of a job and Allison pregnant.

But that’s okay, because he’s just been replaced—by a robot. Sheriff Andy, to be precise, who has a southern accent and an aw-shucks manner that I was sure would turn out to be an act.

I turned out to be wrong, and that’s one of the lovely things about this episode. I expected the usual bad-guy-takes-over-and-Carter-has-to-prove-it-and-save-the-day. But that’s not what happened at all.

Andy was a funny, great guy and I really, really hated to see him go at the end. This is one character I would love to see more of—then again, he might just give Carter a run for his money when it comes to charming the viewers. Andy stole the show!

Welcome Back, Carter—a new EurekaFan favorite!

Tell me what you thought of this episode…

You’ll definitely want to see the full sized version, which was labeled as a surprised Colin Ferguson and “our newest addition to the Eureka family”. Permanent or guest star? :) I have to say, I think Jamie Ray Newman is a good actress. I adored the part she played in Duet, in season 2 of Atlantis. Since Duet was a great opportunity to show off her ability to play with both comedy and drama, and to show that she could do it well, I have high hopes for her role on Eureka! Here’s hoping it’s a long and fruitful engagement… (And no, that’s not some kind of wild hint of things to come even though a recent piece of news indicates that Carter might have a new love interest during the latter part of season three!)

Link to image and comment: Eureka Unscripted

In the meantime, I want to talk about From Fear to Eternity…

I had my moment in the sun when I realized they were following up on the Jo Lupo and Zane Donovan moment I talked about in my comments about Here Come the Suns.

Now Zane on the other hand, I adore. However, I think there’s trouble to come between him and Jo Lupo. That relationship would certainly be on the skids if Jo were able to see the look on Zane’s face when she made certain serious overtures toward him. No secretive smile from him–he wants to run away. That’s the only way I can describe that look. So look out Jo! Maybe you’ll decide Tag’s the better man after all!

Did you notice how nothing really changed from the beginning of the episode to the end, even if they seemed to have resolved their temporary breakup? So look out Zane, because I hear that we’ll be seeing Taggart again sometime in the upcoming season three episodes.

From Fear to Eternity has Zoe facing repercussions after her slip in the goo in the underground government facility beneath Eureka (Phased and Confused). Although Henry gets to work right away trying to find a cure for Zoe’s deteriorating condition, only Eva Thorne knows what’s going on—and Carter is running out of time to get the answers Zoe needs.

Throughout this season’s episodes, Eva Thorne has been walking a fine line of villainy and goodness. Her actions in the early episodes made it hard to decide if she was out to get Eureka, or if she was just misunderstood.  I’m so glad this plot was wrapped up before the break!

Of course, they left us with another big question to have answered and that’s whether or not Carter will still be Sheriff come the second half of the season. Personally, I want Carter as Sheriff Carter, but I’m sure the writers can convince me otherwise if they try! :-) Uncle Carter though? I’m really not sure about that one! What about you?

I’d really love to know if you think you’ll like where they’re going with the new baby thing. With Lexi and Allison, that’s going to be a load of kids running around underfoot! What were they thinking?!

• Season three episode downloads
• Buy the From Fear to Eternity download

Oh, and I updated the news and articles page with a link to the video tribute to Nathan Stark where the cast discusses Ed Quinn’s departure from Eureka.

Since those are just static pages on the site, feel free to leave any comments about them on this post! I love talking about Eureka and its people!

In Here Come the Suns, it’s election time in Eureka. There’s been no mayor for months, and they’re ready to vote someone into office. Since it’s Eureka, it’s not a stretch to note that there aren’t any age limits on candidates, so the hopeful politicians include Zoe’s boyfriend Lucas. Vincent and Paul Herrera round out the list. Zoe gets so caught up trying to insure Lucas’s success that she ignores her science parter, who is forced to work alone on their science project.

When a second sun pops up into the sky, the heat is on.

Here Come the Suns is a great episode and I loved it, but that’s not to say I don’t have something to say about it. :-)

Lexi Carter has taken her place as a regular in this episode. She’s been as prominent, if not more so, than Henry Deacon in the last few episodes and in this one, she’s pivotal–and it has something to do with Henry. I just wished I liked her more. She seems kind of like a silly addition to the show. I love the show and I love the people of Eureka. So far there hasn’t been anyone I would like to see gone, with the notable exception of Eva Thorne, and I’m hoping that won’t be too far into the future.

With Lexi, my problem is that she’s not that fun to watch. She kind of depresses me. I don’t know if that was the intention–that Lexi become a grounding force that takes the extraordinary and makes it boring, but I sort of doubt that was the goal. However, they’ve done just that. Lexi is pregnant. She’s alone. Her laughter seems forced and her situation seems grim. Not to mention that her missing boyfriend, who hasn’t been told about his future child/children, is being done a terrible disservice. Maybe that’s the entire problem with Lexi. She’s not someone I can relate to. Her choices seem…childish. She needs to grow up and she’s competing with Zoe as the teen in need of guidance.

I’ll just have to keep watching and have faith that Eureka’s creators understand this and plan to grow Lexi.

Now Zane on the other hand, I adore. However, I think there’s trouble to come between him and Jo Lupo. That relationship would certainly be on the skids if Jo were able to see the look on Zane’s face when she made certain serious overtures toward him. No secretive smile from him–he wants to run away. That’s the only way I can describe that look. So look out Jo! Maybe you’ll decide Tag’s the better man after all!

I think this episode marks the tipping point for Degree. Cute and funny is quickly turning sour. Though we might finally be over the biggest part of the commercial hump with this episode. I found the following comments about the product placement and it’s especially relevant because it looks as though this was “the big one.”

It all began way back in October 2007 when the Sci Fi Channel announced to the Eureka staff that…we would have an official commercial sponsor this season, one that was kicking in a lot of dough and would therefore…require tons of product placement throughout Season Three.  We were also told that…ONE EPISODE in Season Three would have to incorporate a storyline in which the actual product HAD to save Eureka somehow, or at the very least, be INDISPENSABLE to Carter’s Act 5 solve….“Here Comes the Suns”…would become that episode.

Ellipses are skipped parts, so if you want to see what I cut out, read the blog post by Eric Wallace, the episode’s writer.

What some others thought of Here Come the Suns

• BlogCritics Magazine TV Review: Eureka – “Here Come the Suns”
• FilmSchoolRejects TV Review: Eureka 3.7 – Here Come the Suns

Oh, and I found this complete recap of Here Come the Suns if you want all the hot details about the episode.

I liked the way several stories played together in this episode to move the larger story of Eva Thorne closer to a climax. Hopefully, I’ll discover her secret agenda before it’s too late! I certainly don’t want to have to wait until after the mid-season break, but I have a sneaking suspicion my wishes on that might be ignored.

Phased and Confused played up two main stories. One, about Captain Eureka and his apparent crush on Lexi Carter. The other, the story that actually seemed to take the central position in the episode, was about Zoe, her friends, and Zane, and this story is the one that’s interconnected with Eva Thorne. I loved the bits the writers/producers left for me to ponder, including Zoe’s slip, which seemed much more sinister than it played out in Phased and Confused. I really think this one’s coming back for me, especially if the trailers for the next episode, From Fear to Eternity, are an accurate indication of things to come!

The one moment I can’t pass up mentioning from the show, when Jack Carter makes an oh-so-understated remark about Captain Eureka follows.

Looks like Captain Eureka gave us the finger…

–Jack Carter, Phased and Confused

Taken in context, this very literal statement was able to pull a startled laugh from me while I watched. What did you think about it? Too juvenile? Not unexpected? Some of Jack’s comments, I can see them coming, but they always seem to catch me off-guard anyway. :-)

Nathan Stark

After the loss of Nathan Stark, I don’t know what I’m worried about. Surely nothing could be more shocking or disturbing than to lose a great character like that. But then I found a tantalizing tidbit of news called Eureka: More Shocks Coming at SCI FI Wire.

“The agenda of the Fixer [guest star Frances Fisher] will come to light,” Paglia promised. “There will be some changes in the roles of the people in our town again. Some big endings and some new beginnings. There will definitely be a cliffhanger aspect to the end of episode eight. And then we’ll dive into episode nine in the back 13 of this season with some big, big questions to resolve.”

Paglia is Jaime Paglia, the show’s creator, so I think he knows what he’s talking about—or I should say I hope he does.

He also says that the first eight episodes of the season (Season 3) are some of the “biggest…in terms of the science of it” and that they’ll “be paying for that in the back 13.”

I don’t mind that, as long they keep the fun in the episodes!

I do wonder about the “big endings” and “new beginnings” though. I sure hope this doesn’t mean another character is on his (or her) way out!

What about you?

Phased and Confused
Episode 306
Carter’s job is made more impossible when a superhero begins “saving” the day around Eureka with disastrous consequences.

Phased and Confused Video Trailer at SCIFI Channel

If, like me, you’re still worrying over Nathan Stark’s future in Eureka, you might want to read an interesting blog post about the issue.

One of the series writers has written a post entitled “Goodbye, Nathan” that sums it all up nicely. I particularly appreciate knowing that the writers aren’t stupid–they didn’t write Nathan Stark out of the show of their own accord. That’s great news as far as I’m concerned. I can much better understand why they let him go out the way he did, because he was a strong character and I loved the strong ending for him.

Now, all that said, I’ve decided this particular Eureka writer is evil. Just look at this bit from the post.

And now for the answer to the only question you probably care about right now—Is Stark Really Dead?—the answer is YES.

For now.

Why would he say this after thoroughly explaining why Nathan Stark will not be coming back?

Huh?

That’s what I thought. He’s evil. He wants me to hope Nathan will return–or he’s setting me up for Nathan’s return, because maybe there’s some big secret about Nathan coming back that no one will know until it happens…

Sorry, I went off into la-la land again. I really will miss that character.

However, now that I’ve had some time to think about it and separate myself from the emotions of that killer episode “I Do Over” I’ve realized that to bring Henry Deacon‘s character back to greatness, Nathan had to go.

Henry has been relegated to the background lately, because there just isn’t enough room in the show for three strong males. Of course Jack Carter can’t go away, and there’s too much animosity between Nathan and Jack for them to consistently find themselves working together to solve problems. Henry must return to Jack’s side because I love Jack but even I realize Jack needs intellectual assistance with some of the stuff that goes on in Eureka. It’s a town of geniuses, after all.

So, even though I’m going to really miss Nathan Stark, his absence might just make sense for the show. For now.