
Like the post-nuclear attack America it chronicles, Jericho is coming back from near annihilation. Saved by fan protests, it returns for a leaner, faster-paced, seven-episode Season 2. It dials back some sluggish relationship stories and offers new details about life in the "Allied States of America," split at the Mississippi, on the verge of civil war and prey to a thickening conspiracy. The dialogue's still pulpy, but its action story is the bomb.
Grade: B
The new Elvis Costello television series, Stephen Colbert's Christmas Special and Chungking Express on DVD
The Monty Python Holy Grail on DVD, Gears of War 2 for the gamers, Bolt in movie theaters, and more
The good cheer of Happy-Go-Lucky, reliving the amazing life of John Lennon, cathing up with The Starter Wife on TV, and more
Greg Kinnear, in Flash of Genius, Richard Jenkins in The Visitor, Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married, and more
Jenny Lewis in the record stores, Dennis Lehane's The Given Day in bookstores, The Lucky Ones in movie theaters, and more
Ice Age vs. Transformers: It's a Draw!
Summer Reading List
The History of the Bikini
Ask Your Questions: The New York Times' Bill Keller
Cartoons of the Week