Who else was completely bummed out by that Rescue Me season finale last night?

It was a downer of a capper to a sixth season that was a letdown overall. It often felt like some of the show’s funnier moments, which have always been so clever and sometimes outrageous, in the past, were strung together like one-liners, and the ongoing bit with Garrity (Steven Pasquale) and Mike (Mike Lombardi) trying to help doomed firefighter Pat (Will Chase) slipped into farce more than once (and not particularly good farce).

It was also with a heavy-handed dose of foreshadowing that the writers kept letting us know something, something really bad, was going to happen to Damien. Actor Michael Zegen talked to the Los Angeles Times about the fate of his character, and hints at what will happen in the show’s seventh, and final, season, which kicks off next summer and is scheduled to wrap right around the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Appropriate time to end the show, but I still think a better, wholly more appropriate ending would have been to end the series with the fifth season finale, when Uncle Teddy (Lenny Clarke) shot Tommy (Denis Leary) and left him bleeding on the floor of the bar. Sure, it would have been devoid of the show’s lighter elements, but it also would have been a fitting ending for a character who’s caused so much trouble, for so many people who love him, throughout the series, and The Sopranos-esque ending of leaving Tommy’s dead-or-alive fate hanging might have angered fans initially, but, again, would have been better than what’s already happened in season six.

The cast and crew have already filmed the nine episodes that will make up season seven, so expect spoilers to leak before they find their way to air on FX in June 2011.

In the meantime, what do other Rescue Me fans think about the just-concluded season? Was Damien’s accident a shocker? And what about Lou (John Scurti)? Is the lovable fireman skating away without taking his fair share of the blame for what happened to Damien, since it might not have happened had he retired, as his doctor suggested? And what do you want to see happen, ultimately, to the Gavin clan?

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• Tags: Rescue Me season 7, Rescue Me seasoon 6 finale

The Big C
Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Stars: Laura Linney, John Benjamin Hickey, Oliver Platt, Gabriel Basso, Gabourey Sidibe and Phyllis Somerville

The Big Idea: Uptight Minneapolis wife/mom/schoolteacher Cathy (Linney) finds out she has the titular “Big C” — stage four melanoma — and, instead of immediately seeking treatment, she decides to keep the diagnosis to herself and spend what time she has left getting her life in order, shaping her teen son into a good human being and having a little fun.

To Watch or Not to Watch: Go ahead and give it a season pass on your DVR, because The Big C not only starts off strong, but only gets better with each episode that follows.

The main reason: Linney is perfectly cast in the role. Truly, after the first few moments of the premiere, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else playing the role of Cathy, who could come off as prickly, over-the-top wacky or just plain grating and less sympathetic in the hands of a less talented, less likable actress. After all, she’s kicked her husband Paul (Platt) out of the house for reasons neither he nor their teenage son Adam (Basso, who joins the junior set on Modern Family and The Middle in making up one of the least annoying crops of TV kids ever) understand, and she’s keeping the news of her diagnosis from them.

But the fun (and the implicit nudge that we should all rethink our priorities, before some major life event forces us to) comes from what Cathy does do after getting the bad news, which includes hiring a contractor to install a swimming pool in her yard, cost be damned; telling off, and then befriending, the crabby neighbor (Somerville) across the street; reconnecting with her brother Sean (who chooses to be homeless); and trying to help one of her students, the irreverent Andrea (Sidibe, who makes up for her gig as one of the all-time worst Saturday Night Live hosts by proving she can pull off the funny), lose weight.

The show could have been subtitled How Cathy Got Her Groove Back. Sean (the scene-stealing Hickey) even tells her at one point, “You’re starting to get your weird back, sis,” and the weirder, and less uptight, Cathy gets, the more fun the show becomes. And yes, as unlikely as it might seem that a show about a terminal illness could be fun, or funny, The Big C is, and that’s the best reason to tune in.

TV Screener Tidbit: The star-packed first season of The Big C (and I’m guessing a second-season renewal will come pretty quickly for the show) will include guest appearances by The Wire/The Office’s Idris Elba (as a love interest for Cathy); Brian Cox as Cathy’s dad; Cynthia Nixon as a friend of Cathy’s; Reid Scott (My Boys) as Cathy’s hottie dermatologist (who has some very flirtatious moments with her in the first few episodes); and Liam Neeson as a holistic healer Cathy seeks out.

The Big C premieres Monday, August 16, at 10PM ET on Showtime

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• Tags: Laura Linney, The Big C

Star Rating: 4 out of 5

Stars: Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, Saul Rubinek, Genelle Williams, Allison Scagliotti

The Big Idea: Warehouse 13 returns with a tour de force start to its second season, showcasing the brilliant fusion of steampunk sensibility, world mythology, and Nick and Nora-style comic asides that brought Syfy sky-high ratings during its freshman year.

Last year’s cliffhanger left us with Claudia (Allison Scagliotti) compromised and on the run, MacPherson (Roger Rees) re-Leah-sed and poised to loot the Warehouse, and Myka (Joanne Kelly) and Pete (Eddie McClintock) watching helplessly as the firebomb boobytrap MacPherson set for Artie (Saul Rubinek) consumed their supervisor and friend. (Is Artie dead? Not spoiling that here. But I will say this: one of Warehouse 13’s real strengths is that it is internally consistent. It doesn’t ground events in steampunk or mythology and then break those rules when convenient. In other words, the writers are engaged and not lazy. And recurring characters – two, precisely – do die in this episode.)

The season premiere picks up right from there, as Pete and Myka try desperately to assess the damage and track down MacPherson and his stolen booty. Now, I can’t tell you much more without spoilers on what is a wild and worthwhile ride. I can say that the resolution involves: antimatter, antigravity, H.G. Wells, one really ticked off and deceptively youthful feminist, the world’s safest safety deposit vault, a pearl of great price, Dante’s vision of hell come to life, more booby traps within the Warehouse, CERN, T.M.I. regarding the last time Pete “got his groove on,” identity theft, gender confusion, nods to both Young Frankenstein and the afterlife, and oh yeah, the zipline.

I will expand a bit on the warehouse-spanning zipline, just to say that it looks like the funnest ride ever, and hasn’t been used since the early days of season one. And Myka and Pete’s tandem entanglement on the one-seater provides one of many instances that highlight the easy chemistry of McClintock and Kelly. “If you’re gonna grab me like that, I need some sweet talkin’ first,” says he. “Shut up and drive,” she responds.

To Watch or Not to Watch: Definitely, especially if you’re into fast-paced, snappy dialogue wrapped around fantastical storytelling, centered within a basic trust in the intelligence and common references of the viewer (it’s a safe bet that Warehouse 13 is causing many, many trips to Wikipedia, as folks fill in their knowledge gaps on topics like Edgar Allan Poe, Lewis Carroll, Phoenixes, etc.).

Also notable in this week’s episode is guest star Jaime Murray as seductress-with-a-secret Helena. Murray literally burned up the screen during a guest stint on Dexter’s second season, and does the same here.

TV Screener Tidbit: Check out CraveOnline.com’s interview with McClintock and Kelly, which includes a great anecdote about the “mistake” that landed them their Warehouse 13 roles.

Warehouse 13, season two, premieres Tuesday, July 6 at 9PM ET on Syfy

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• Tags: Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, Saul Rubinek, Warehouse 13 season 2

Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Stars: Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill and Caitlin Blackwood

The Big Idea: In Doctor Who: The Eleventh Hour, the baton is passed from David Tennant to Matt Smith as the latest incarnation of the enigmatic Doctor, who crash lands in a tiny English village after his violent regeneration lays waste to the controls and interior of his TARDIS. “The Eleventh Hour” is a British expression meaning “a time which is nearly too late,” and showrunner Steven Moffat returns to this theme throughout the premiere … the eleventh Doctor scrambles with seconds to spare to save his beloved TARDIS from imminent destruction; he races against a worldwide countdown to zero to save the Earth; and he finds himself nearly deprived of his newest companion not once, but twice, after committing the sin of arriving late (Tsk tsk, Time Lord. You’d think in 903 years you’d learn not to keep a woman waiting. Someone just might show up with a better offer … ).

To Watch or Not to Watch: Let’s start with the actors. I had my doubts about Matt Smith when he was announced – he’s appallingly young and light on experience, with his main qualification being the ridiculous hair seemingly required of all Doctor Whos. But I’m happy to admit I was dead wrong. Smith was born to play this role, with a performance that is somewhat reminiscent of Tennant’s frenetic energy, but which already has more nuance, more hint of the alien behind the face, than the 10th Doctor ever conveyed.

Karen Gillan is likewise a real find as his fiery Scottish companion – and she’s a ginger (Britspeak for redhead, which is funny because the Doctor’s one, oft-expressed regret about his varied regenerations is that he’s never been a ginger). While she’s not yet as comfortable in her role as Smith is, she goes from good to even better as the premiere progresses, and there’s a palpable sense that the circumstance of their meeting may make her the ideal companion to our interventionist hero. And from the male perspective, it doesn’t hurt that this ex-model is very, very easy on the eyes.

Finally, but definitely not least, Caitlin Blackwood plays a seven-year-old Scottish girl, home alone for the evening, whose backyard is demolished by the run-amuck TARDIS and similarly out of control, “not yet fully cooked” Doctor. It would be too big a spoiler to elaborate about the character, so suffice it to say she’s unafraid as she engages with this magical stranger and feeds him “Fish Custard” (you read that right) in a hilarious, not-to-be-missed comic sequence. Blackwood (the real-life cousin of Karen Gillan) is adorable and nearly steals the scenes right out from under Smith. Memo to Hollywood: This, not the endless parade of Dakota Fanning clones, is how child actors should present.

Meanwhile, the premiere’s plot is engaging, and bears up well under the burden of introducing so many different characters and backstories, while still maintaining continuity with Who happenings of the past. Old Tennant catchphrases such as “timey whimey” and “wibblely wobbly” get affectionate nods, the sonic screwdriver gets worked to (literal) exhaustion, and we find out that the TARDIS has a library in the swimming pool (or vice versa) after the crash.

The only misstep: the music. It’s jarring, usually at the most inappropriate points. Music should be counterpoint to a scene, secondary to the writing, not an overly loud insurance policy to alert the viewer that a character is in danger.

TV Screener Tidbit: Smith says he prepared himself for his Who gig by writing Doctor Who-themed short stories before he stepped into the role.

Doctor Who, season five, premieres Saturday, April 17 at 9PM ET on BBC America

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• Tags: Caitlin Blackwood, Doctor Who, Doctor Who season 5, Karen Gillan, Matt Smith

Star Rating: 4 out of 5

Stars: Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Adam Baldwin, Joshua Gomez, Ryan McPartlin, Sarah Lancaster, Vik Sahay, Scott Krinsky, Bonita Friedericy, Mark Christopher Lawrence and Tony Hale

The Big Idea: Who doesn’t love a fresh start? Brand new year – brand new decade – and brand new episodes of Chuck, off to a powerhouse season-three debut with three episodes (two on Jan. 10 and another new ep in the show’s regular timeslot, Mondays at 8PM, on Jan. 11). I’ve had the chance to watch the first five episodes, and I’m happy to report that Chuck still has the heart, the humor and the high-octane action/romance blend that inspired fans to launch a successful save-the-show campaign (and nosh a whole lotta Subway sammies) last spring.

As we learned in last season’s finale, Chuck’s Intersect 2.0 flashes can now provide him with some serious (and seriously cool) physical talents, namely all manner of martial arts, and this turns out to be a boon for star Zachary Levi’s physical comedy skills. It’s pure joy to watch Chuck nervously summon up the appropriate proficiency in a tense situation, and then cycle rapidly through a full resume of emotions, from hesitant bemusement, to “This rocks!” giddiness at his newfound skills, to blasé mastery and back again.

And bonus, the worst kept secret in Chuckdom turns out to be true – the abilities don’t always appear on cue, and they tend to evaporate at really inconvenient moments.

To Watch or Not to Watch: So, Chuck’s not Superman – though his mysterious new boss Daniel Shaw is played by Brandon “Superman Returns” Routh, and Smallville’s Kristin Kreuk shows up in episode five as … well, we’re not really sure. Kreuk, like Rachel Bilson in season one, and Jordana Brewster in season two, does seem to fit someone’s preference for casting brunettes who’ve been in the Maxim Top 100 as rivals to Sarah for Chuck’s affection. And speaking of the would-be primetime supercouple, for Chuck and Sarah (Strahovski) in season three … well, it’s complicated, mostly because of Chuck’s new abilities and his new commitment to using them in his spy guy job. There’s some good, old-fashioned clueless guy moves along the way as well, including one on a train platform in the season premiere that will make you yell “Idiot!” at your TV.

Finally, the Buy More gang is back, and they’re in top form. Morgan’s (Joshua Gomez) return, culminating in him living the dream of every name tag-wearing arrested adolescent, Casey (Adam Baldwin) dealing effectively, brutally and comically with a terrorist insurgency loose in the big box store and a hilarious homage to Fight Club that leads to a classic Lester (Vik Sahay) and Jeff (Scott Krinsky) plot are but a few of the moments in the first batch of new episodes that should make us all happy those post-season two rumors of big budget cuts for Chuck didn’t mean we’ll be spending less time in the land of Buymoria.

TV Screener Tidbits: In addition to an even beefier role for Levi, Ryan McPartlin’s Captain Awesome also gets more play this season, as Awesome is sucked into the spy game and finds it, ultimately, not so much to his liking. Meanwhile, those rumors of a death in the season premiere? Sadly true. And it comes as a big shock.

Chuck season three premieres Sunday, January 10, at 9PM ET on NBC

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• Tags: Chuck, Chuck season 3, Chuck season 3 premiere, Chuck season premiere, Zachary Levi