Zuleikha Robinson is not very well known as her work on both New Amsterdam and Rome has been short-lived. However, she's going to be recognized now, after becoming a regular cast member of the hit show, Lost.

The London-born actress was raised in both Malaysia and Thailand, so she's certainly worldly. Some may remember her from the 2007 film The Namesake, in which she played Moushimi, opposite the protagonist Golgol (Kal Penn).

Entertainment Weekly reports that Robinson will play Illana, "a European female who possesses great intelligence but who's also dangerous as all get out. She's alluring and apparently used to getting her own way." She sounds like everyone else on the island. She sounds like trouble — I like her already! … continue reading

Entertainment Weekly reported last week that Michelle Rodriguez will be reprising her role of disgraced LAPD cop Ana Lucia Cortez this season on Lost.

What's that you say — she's dead? Well, speculation on the Internet suggests she'll return as a zombie (doubtful), as a hallucination (totally possible given the island’s maddening history) or as (drum roll please) a flashback.

Maybe the flashback is to occur in the second episode with Hurley as the main focus of the storyline. Chances are the big guy’s going to be kicking it with the ghosts of his Lost past. Perhaps Ana Lucia doesn’t even appear as a ghost — maybe Officer Cortez has some sort of scuffle with Hurley’s shady father, played by Cheech Marin. … continue reading

Ah, summer: time for swimming, frolicking, eating ice cream, sitting in a dark room and crying because all the good television shows are on hiatus until fall.

Kidding, of course! Summer is a time of great optimism for television addicts. You can catch up on any shows you missed, because last fall's shows will be hitting DVD any day now. You can watch the Television Critics Association's summer press tour, hoping to catch a glimpse of any fall shows that will feature strong, confident, beautiful women in leading rolls. (And maybe if we're lucky, even some lesbian subtext!) You can even take a look at the Television Critics Association's Summer poll and set your TiVo (or order your Netflix queue) accordingly.

According to the Television Critics Association's summer poll, here are the best and worst of shows of 2008:

Best:

I definitely agree with the first seven. I haven't seen Breaking Bad or In Treatments. I can say, however, that even as a history nut, watching Laura Linney make out with Paul Giamatti in John Adams is downright yucky. … continue reading

Last week ABC's Lost returned for six new post-strike episodes, and I was certainly ready to get back on the island. Last week's episode (spoiler warning if you haven't watched last week's episode!) revealed that Sayid began working for Ben because someone affiliated with the dastardly Charles Widmore (whose British accent keeps going in and out) had murdered Sayid's long-sought-after true love.

It was interesting to learn a little more about Sayid, and I do like his story lines, but after thinking about what happened, I realized that slowly but surely all of the female characters on Lost have kind of faded into the background. At this point the main plot seems to be about the creepy, manipulative Ben Linus and his mysterious battle with Charles Widmore. All the women on the show are now either pregnant, being a mother, or busy mooning over a man (or two).

Kate (Evangeline Lilly), who was such a kick-ass character in the first season, has become torn between two lovers as if she were in a soap opera (complete with false pregnancy scares!), and honestly, both Jack and Sawyer have become somewhat annoying this season. I still have a fondness for Sawyer (yeah, he's smarmy, but at least he admits it!), but he seems to have been relegated to the role of a buffoon.

All photos by ABC/Mario Perez

What about the other ladies of Lost? Well, Claire (Emilie de Ravin) has been largely missing, and she never really had much to do besides take care of her possibly freaky baby. If the flash forwards are anything to judge by, she won't have much to do in the future, either. Sun (Yunjin Kim) has triumphed over adversity in the past, but now her whole story line involves getting off the island so she can give birth (and possibly fearing for the mortality of her husband). … continue reading

If you're anything like me, this post will take you a while to read. It certainly took a while to write. Blame it on the eyes of Elizabeth Mitchell.

Good god, how hot can one person be?

I doubt that Mitchell needs an introduction to this audience. I mean, she got to make love with Angelina Jolie in Gia.

She also played the sultry shrink who escorted Dr. Kerry Weaver out of the closet on ER.

And now she plays the enigmatic Dr. Juliet Burke on Lost. … continue reading

Like my co-worker Karman said so poetically today, I'm "sick of having the cloying, traditionally heterosexual holiday crammed down [my] throat every year." But if I did celebrate Valentine's Day, I'd be pleased to get one of these lovelies in my box. Inbox! I meant inbox.

First, here's an awesome Alien-themed valentine that I really did get in my inbox this morning, from my very talented friend Andy Swist (click for a larger version):

Isn't cartoon Ripley foxy?

Next, here are a few Lost ecards from the ABC website:

I do trust you, Juliet, I do! … continue reading

The reviews are in — and they're practically gushing in their praise ("Oh. My. God." is how one reviewer put it). Tonight, at long last, we're finally getting back to the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815, led by emotionally scarred antihero Dr. Jack, and their weird, creepy, epic battle with the mysterious forces on that unplottable island that wreak havoc with women having babies (or something). I can't wait!

Sure, there are some downsides to the return. Even though Lost on Thursday nights is now going to be an oasis of newness in a strike-parched winter, it's only going to last for eight episodes. Sob. (Thankfully, by then Battlestar Galactica will be back!) And the long-teased gay character has never appeared. Maybe this will be the year, but I'm not holding my breath.

So to while away the hours until I'm back on the island, here are some photos from tonight's episode, "The Beginning of the End." I haven't read any spoilers, so I can't actually offer you any hints as to what's going to happen. But feel free to speculate away in the comments!

Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell) looks surprisingly happy

  … continue reading

Is it Monday? No? It sure feels like it. So here's some eye candy to help while away the day.

1. Annie Leibovitz snaps Cate Blanchett on the set of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull:

I need that picture to be much, much bigger. (From Vanity Fair — see more here.)

2. All you need to know about Lost in 8 minutes and 15 seconds (ha): … continue reading

Last week, ABC announced that Lost will return Jan. 31, airing Thursdays at 9 (yes, that's currently Grey's Anatomy's spot, but new episodes of Grey's will soon run out because of the writers' strike). Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof considers the time change a great move because it means the show won't have to compete with American Idol.

Here's a new trailer for the fourth season — this one is a little longer than the teaser released last week: … continue reading

I am not particularly drawn to the paranormal. As I mentioned previously, I had a few issues after my brother tricked me into seeing Poltergeist. And it's not just that I get scared. (Of course, it's partly that I get scared.) It's also that it's just not my thing most of the time. I did watch The Twilight Zone, and I like the occasional campy heaven-and-hell–themed movie (Two of a Kind, Oh God, Switch). And there's The Hunger. But that's not about the vampires.

It seems, however, that my tastes do not reflect the current television lineup. Alessandra Stanley, the New York Times TV reviewer who recently expressed dismay at how insecure the new Jaime Sommers is, notes that this season is paranormal-heavy. I must say I agree with her that it is pretty weird.

She noted that a few of the paranormal shows have been on for a least a couple of years:

The Ghost Whisperer

… continue reading

Michelle Rodriguez says she's normal — not normal as it's defined in the real world, mind you. She's Hollywood-normal.

The Lost star was recently captured on video by paparazzi as she was leaving the L.A. celebspot Teddy's. The "reporters" followed her and her silent, butchy sidekick to their car, asking burning questions such as what she was drinking that night. Answer: "Water, tonic water, orange juice, ya know, all that good stuff that comes naturally out of the ground." So that's where orange juice comes from. … continue reading

ABC has announced plans for the Lost "endgame."

That's definitely what the show feels like to me lately: a game, one not unlike Myst and Riven, both of which eventually annoyed me. The "maybe they're really dead" hints in recent episodes are not cool, so I hope the eventual answers will feel like actual solutions rather than cheats.

There will be 48 more episodes of Lost — three uninterrupted 16-episode seasons. That means the final piece of the puzzle will be revealed during the 2009–10 season, and the total number of episodes will be 120. Great: Now I'm thinking about what all those numbers might mean. Speaking of which, did you know someone's keeping a blog that tracks the Lost numbers? And there are plenty of websites that analyze the numbers. Just looking at this stuff makes me feel crazy, like that guy in the Darren Aronofsky movie Pi. … continue reading