Josh Duhamel has already been to Pine Valley to shoot his "All My Children" return, which is slated to air on August 4. MSN TV has the first photos of Duhamel in his old stomping grounds.

Bing: Watch clips and episodes of 'All My Children' 

"All My Children" has lined up some serious returns for its final days on ABC, not in the least of which is Josh Duhamel. The super star is set to shake things up as Pine Valley's favorite con artist, Leo du Pres, with a one day guest spot next month.

As "All My Children" fans know, after Leo was paired with Rebecca Budig's Greenlee in 2000, the duo quickly became a soap opera super couple. Then Leo allegedly fell to his death in 2003, allowing Duhamel to move to the show "Las Vegas" and onto the the big screen.

Bing: More about Josh Duhamel

Duhamel's scenes on August 4 promise storyline twists -- the biggest probably being that Leo's alive, unless the reunion pictured below is a dream or fantasy. 

"All My Children" airs weekdays on ABC.

 

• Necromancer Marnie cast a scary spell on the very camp vamp Pam when she came to confront the coven about Eric being MIA. Pam ran off in a fit of fear and rage, but the coven -- including Lafayette, Tara and Jesus -- said Marnie better stop messing around with the vampires -- or they'd all end up dead. Tara said she was headed back to New Orleans, but Jesus suggested he and Lafayette pay a visit to his Mexican grandfather, someone he knew could help "fight fire with fire." He relayed a story about his grandfather presenting him with a pet goat -- then making him kill it. Afterward, he made little Jesus lick the knife so he could take the spirit of the animal inside. "It was power, a force, it was incredible. Whatever that force was, we need it. We need it now."
• Arlene and Terry were super-worried about their baby being possessed by his bad dad, the long-dead Bon Temps serial killer Renee. So Terry called Reverend Daniels and his wife -- Tara's mom Lettie May. The priestly pair sang songs and waved incense around, but could that cure the baby? Maybe. Later, Terry and Arlene enjoyed the quiet of a peaceful night. But a matchbook magically set on fire tells us everything's not quite right.    
• Still memory-less and confused, Eric found himself hovering over Sookie, bloodlust driving him crazy. But his love for Sookie kept him at bay. Then his long-dead (like, for real) maker Godric appeared to remind him that he was damned, so he should just drink. As he bit into Sookie's succulent neck, the dream faded and Eric woke with a shock. Then he wandered into Sookie's room, fangs bared. Sookie woke and Eric told her about her his bad dream. Sookie told him he could sleep with her, "as long as you keep your hands and fangs to yourself."  
• Tommy Mickens went back to see his mama Melinda Mickens -- who told him she finally left his mean-to-the-bone dad. But it was a trap: Joe Lee Mickens captured Tommy via chain rope, with plans to put the shifter into a big dog fight the next day. But Tommy, knowing his dad, played dead, then attacked, killing his father. Unfortunately, mama Mickens bit it in the process, too. So Tommy brought the bodies of his parents to his big brother Sam's, bringing big time drama into Sam's life once again. Sheriff Bellefleur, always antagonizing Sam, pulled the pair over. He spotted blood in the van, and demanded to inspect it.  When he unlocked the door, Andy found a giant gator. Quick thinking, Tommy. Then the brothers dumped the bodies in the swamp, and Sam told a stressed out Tommy that he, too, once killed people in self-defense. "I ain't seen no devils in my mirror or nothing," he said. 
• Bill Compton found out last week that his new lover, Portia Bellefleur, was actually his great, great granddaughter. But Portia saw no reason to stop their dalliances -- incest was only banned to prevent messed up kids, she explained, and Bon Temps had its share of kissing cousins. So Bill compelled her to run screaming any time she saw him. Vampire Pam, wearing a black mantilla, thanks to her corpse-like face, went to go see Bill to gain vengeance. But he said there was nothing he could do without getting Pam punished -- and vampire-on-human violence got the "true death" penalty.
• Alcide got a visit from Marcus Boseman, packmaster of Shreveport, La., who was pretty pissed that Alcide had been living in his territory without registering with the pack. "I'm currently exploring free agency, it's a nice fit so far," Alcide told him, blowing him off. Something tells me we haven't seen the last of Marcus Boseman.  
• Hoyt and Jessica, problems aside for the moment, focused on helping Jason, who had been torn apart by the were-panthers. But they still hadn't really reconciled. Hoyt asked if there was something Jess hadn't told him. She said she loved him, but he couldn't bring himself to say it back. Later, at Merlotte's, Jason told Hoyt about being raped by the were-panthers. Jason overheard witchy waitress Holly talking about the full moon looming and freaked. That night, Jason dreamed that Jessica came on to him -- and Hoyt was there to watch.  
• Sookie stopped fellow Merlotte's witchy waitress Holly to ask her about the Wiccan stuff -- but Holly wasn't talking, at least out loud. So Sookie read her mind and found out about Marnie and the coven. Later, Sookie went to visit Marnie's store for "a reading." She told the witch that when she was younger, her two favorite shows were "Sabrina The Teenaged Witch" and "Charmed." As Marnie began the reading, Sookie tried to read her mind. But it was chaos. Marnie told Sookie that her gran was watching over her. Gran had a message: "the new man you have feelings for, you are not to give him your heart." Then she told Sook that Marnie was a danger -- and to run! 
• Tara told Sookie about her girlfriend Naomi -- and that she might lose her because she lied about who she is. She asked Sookie if she could stay, and Sookie said no. And Tara soon found out why. Eric appeared, and Tara freaked. "He's a psycho, murdering asshole," Tara reminded her. "You hate Eric Northman." Then she ran off. Eric was surprised to hear all the horrible things he'd done to Sookie. But Sookie said she trusted that he could change. "I've seen you change. I like it. I like you." Eric, who couldn't trust himself. decided he must go. But Sookie asked him not to -- and kissed him, for the first time, of her own violation. 
• Marnie got another visitor, Katie, a coven member, who apparently was undercover -- and had Marnie hauled away by guards. But who are they working for? Locked away in a cell, Marnie again saw the bad witch who'd been possessing her -- and the horrible things her coven was put through by evil vampire priests. Shortly after that, Bill spoke to her via speaker, asking, quite calmly, where Eric is. He asked her to reverse the spell she put on Pam, but Marnie insisted she didn't know how. Bill went into the cell to glamour Marnie to find out the truth -- and learned that she wasn't lying. Bill gathered the remaining four vampire sheriffs to tell them about Eric. One of them told of Antonia, a great sorceress who massacred all the vampires in the area 400 years ago via a spell. The sheriffs and Pam wanted to kill the witch to avoid facing a similar fate -- and Pam accidentally outed that Eric was at Sookie's. Oops. 

"True Blood" airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.

 

By Deanna Barnert
Special to MSN TV
Here's the lowdown on which daytime talkers will be hanging out with Lance Bass, Megan Mullally, Aisha Tyler, Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Daniel Craig, Swoosie Kurtz, Denise Richards, Craig Ferguson, Jordan Sparks, Dominic Cooper, Don Cheadle, Rebecca Black and Caroline Manzo and Playmate Crystal Harris. Plus, don't miss live performances from Aretha Franklin, Journey and Tim Robbins and The Rogues Gallery Band.

Bing: More about Tim Robbins

"Live With Regis and Kelly"
Monday: Heidi Klum, Jayma Mays, guest co-host Neil Patrick Harris
Tuesday: Steve Carell, Ray Davies
Wednesday: Sofia Vergara, OneRepublic
Thursday: Julianne Moore, 3 Doors Down
Friday: Craig Ferguson, chef Michael Psilakis

Bing: Watch clips and episodes of 'Ellen Show'

"The Ellen Show"
(repeats)
Monday: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Michael Grimm
Tuesday: Jim Parsons, Kym Douglas, Bristol Palin, Mark Ballas
Wednesday: Ricky Martin, Mike O'Malley, Kellie Pickler
Thursday: Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Marisa Miller, the Band Perry
Friday: Steve Carell, Alison Sweeney

"The Gayle King Show"
Monday: Giada de Laurentiis
Tuesday: Caroline Manzo
Wednesday: TBA
Thursday: Lance Bass
Friday: Rebecca Black

"The View"
Monday: Playmate Crystal Harris, Audra McDonald
Tuesday: Denise Richards, Tim Robbins and The Rogues Gallery Band perform
Wednesday: Tom Bergeron
Thursday: guest co-host James Woods; Donyelle Jones and Shane Sparks
Friday: Mario Cantone, John Pinette, Donyelle Jones and Shane Sparks

"The Rachael Ray Show"
Monday: TBA
Tuesday: TBA
Wednesday: TBA
Thursday: Alison Sweeney
Friday: Sofia Vergara, Nancy O'Dell

"The Talk"
Monday: Megan Mullally
Tuesday: Kathy Baker, Aisha Tyler
Wednesday: Giuliana and Bill Rancic, Chef Ludo Lefebvre
Thursday: Swoosie Kurtz, Penn Jillette
Friday: Gillian Anderson, Beth Littleford

"Today"
Monday: Daniel Craig, Giada DeLaurentiis, Don Cheadle, Aretha Franklin performs
Tuesday: Denise Richards, Steve Carell and Julianne Moore, Jeff Gordon, Natalie Cole, Gregg Allman
Wednesday: 3 Doors Down perform, Henry Cejudo, Denise Richards, Jordan Sparks
Thursday: Dr. Nancy Snyderman, The Scotto Family, Dominic Cooper
Friday: Journey performs live on the plaza, Craig Ferguson

 

"You and I are in the same boat." – Walter White

Last week, Jesse reached the fatalistic conclusion that since Gus didn't kill them immediately, he would certainly be intent on making their lives a living hell. Tonight, we got a glimpse of what that hell on earth could look like for both men, and it seemed to set them both on the darkest journey of their lives.

Characteristically, Walt is desperate to gain control of the situation, while justifying his actions to everyone involved.  This show has always made a point of Walt's overwhelming need to be the "good guy", whether by rationalizing his meth production as a means to provide for his family, or viewing his planned murder of Gale as a twisted form of self-defense by elimination. Mike patiently points out that Walt "won" and should just accept that and move on, but Walt is still ranting on about his very good and logical reasons for everything he did. Once he throws his insane plan to confront (and kill) Gus into the mix, what once would probably have elicited a contemptuous eye-roll from Mike instead results in some punches to the face and stomach. This is Walt's hell: a world where he knows that his life is in someone else's hands and he is forced to live like a scared rabbit instead of the great and powerful Heisenberg.

And Jesse's hell? Well, it certainly isn't other people, at least for now. There is nothing shocking about an individual trying to lose himself in drinking, drugs and non-stop partying after something so traumatic, but director Michelle McLaren took us so deep into the over-stimulated world that Jesse was trying to create that everything packed a visceral punch. All of the scenes at his house were particularly nerve jangling, shot through a haze of pot smoke and infused with non-stop pounding hip hop music. There was one brief interlude of daylight and tenderness, when Andrea came to confront him about the envelope of cash he mailed to her following her brother's murder.  Jesse summons up his better side to try to help her and Brock, whose tentative wave as the car drove away was heartbreaking. Unfortunately, Jesse is eventually left alone with the detritus of his new life, and it is abundantly clear that those hedonistic pleasures will not be able to banish the agony in his mind and heart.

The post-shooting life of Hank and Marie continues to unfold, and it is full of its own agony. Apparently, Hank is not a complete bastard to everyone, as shown by his jovial attitude with the cheerful physical therapist. No, it is only his wife who gets the cold shoulder at best and outright cruelty at worst. Betsy Brandt has always done good work as Marie, but the season seems to shaping up as a real showcase for her; when Hank yells from the bedroom to check the boxes for damage, her muttered "Oh my God" spoke volumes about what she has been going through since her husband came home. However Hank gets sucked back into the drug dealing storyline, it will be interesting to see how Marie develops as well.

This was, once again, an episode where "nothing" happened. The extended scenes of Mike brooding over the blood stain on his cuff, or of Brandon and Skinny Pete arguing about video game zombies ("Where's the challenge? At least the zombies in Left 4 Dead clock a respectable 40.") or even of Walter sitting in the car and working up the nerve to approach Gus's house in the dead of night – none of these advance the plot in a technical sense. But they do what "Breaking Bad" does best – create a sense of dread and tension, with increasingly bleak moments of comedy. And they make sure we are on the dark path with all of these characters, every step of the way.

• Ellsworth! He was seated in the dark and I recognized his voice. Here's hoping Jim Beaver comes back again.
• Jesse explaining his new stereo system by most likely repeating what some salesman had told him was pretty amusing.
• Yes, it wasn't technically DJ Roomba, but I am going to assume the same gadget played both roles. Impressive range!
• Apparently, it is going to be more difficult than she thought for Skyler to make a deal for the car wash. Sounds like a definite "Better Call Saul" moment.
• Even the cheap puns ("If you don't pull the trigger on this…" "I know a thing or two about scrubbing.") are forgivable on this show.
• Kudos again to director Michelle MacLaren and to DP Michael Slovis for an amazing looking hour, full of fun shots like the overhead of Walt on the street in front of Gus's house and the afternoon light filling up Mike's local bar.
• "It's for defense."

 

By Deanna Barnert

Special to MSN TV

When "The Talk" returns for a new season this September, Sharon Osbourne won't be at the table with fellow co-hosts Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Holly Robinson Peete and Leah Remini. The "America's Got Talent" judge is taking a break from her daytime gig to spend more time with her rocker hubby, Ozzy Osbourne.

Bing: Watch clips and episodes of "The Talk"

"I've kept it no secret that I really miss my husband," Sharon Osbourne told AOL TV. "He'll have been on tour for 18 months by the time it's over. I've spent a lot of time away from him. He gets a break at the end of September and so I've asked [the show] for a little break so I can be with him."

While CBS is remaining mum on her exit, Osbourne adds that she's not leaving forever. "I don't want to give [it] up," she continued. "It's a great, great show. We've all worked really hard over the last year. I'm not going to walk away from that. I just need some real good quality time to be with my hubby."

Bing: More about Sharon Osbourne

 

When Daytime Confidential first broke this story, the soap site had an unnamed source who claimed there was "tension on the set," centered around "Queen B" Julie Chen. The rumor goes that Chen, who is married to CBS head Les Moonves, was behind the oustings of former co-host Marissa Jaret Winokur, former executive producer Susan Winston and former Senior Vice-President of Daytime Barbara Bloom.

Needless to say, CBS had denied these speculations in the past and now, Osbourne is making it clear her upcoming break is not about drama on set.

"I'm very close to the women on the show," Osbourne told AOL TV. "I didn't think that I would be [because] none of us knew each other going into it. We just didn't know each other socially." 

Can "The Talk" survive without Osbourne's unique voice? It's hard to imagine who can fill the void, so stay tuned to see how CBS handles this bit of news.

"The Talk" airs weekdays on CBS. 

 

By Deanna Barnert

Special to MSN TV

 

Controversy queen Ann Coulter riles up Father Albert Cutié and his audience on the Monday, July 25, episode of daytime's "Father Albert." During the "Hot under the Collar" segment, Coulter warns against the dangers of single motherhood, argues that crime would decrease if there weren’t so many single moms and espouses adoption -- all of which set off a heated debate.

Bing: More about Anne Coulter

"A woman who gets pregnant out of wedlock, if she wants to do the best thing for the child, [the statistics are] overwhelming that she should give the child up for adoption,” Coulter says during her chat with Father Albert. "If you were in the womb right now and you could choose whether to be black, white, rich, poor ... the one thing you should hope for as a child in the womb is ‘My parents are married."

Never one to hold back, Coulter also insists, "Smoking is not as bad for you as being raised by a single mother."

When Father Albert points out how offended the audience is by her stance, Coulter counters, "Who’s the Christian here, Father? I care about the children. I care about how they are raised and for you to be encouraging women to have children out of wedlock and discouraging them from being sent to nice adoptive homes, I find shocking.”

Bing: More about Father Albert

The single moms in audience also get into the debate, as you can see in the "Father Albert" teaser below. As noted above, this episode airs Monday.

"Father Albert" airs daily on FOX stations in the New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Phoenix, Tampa and Minneapolis markets.

 

"You don't get to be bored." – Louie

One of the most appealing (and odd) traits of the persona Louis C.K. has adopted for his alter-ego "Louie" is his phlegmatic acceptance of every annoying and outrageous thing that happens to him. In the first section of the deceptively simple "Country Drive", on the way to visit a long lost great-aunt, he has to endure the usual aggravations of a long car trip with two kids, from the endless variations on "I'm bored!" to the pointless guessing games sabotaged by the little ones' impatience. But he never blows up, never loses his cool. Even though he may not be enjoying this small portion of his existence, he will stoically endure it as his chosen lot.

This attitude extends to his reaction when great-aunt Ellen drops dead in the kitchen during their brief visit. His face has no horror or panic, just rueful acceptance. After all, this same doddering old lady has just regaled (and horrified) Louie and his daughters with her flagrant racism. By positing this elderly relative to his children as a precious link to the past and a repository of wisdom, he now has to deal with explaining the ugly aspects of our (i.e. America's) past. This vignette segues beautifully into an extended stand-up routine about the difficulty of reading Mark Twain to his kids. Louis C.K. has enough smarts to appreciate the marvelous writing but enough honesty to at a loss about how to navigate the copious use of "the N word".  Exploring these themes with a light touch is something that "Louie" excels at doing, and "Country Ride" was a terrific example from start to finish.

• Louie's extended car-rock-out to The Who, complete with ridiculous air drumming and an abundance of white man's overbite, was a joyful thing to behold. It went on so long it crossed over from funny to weird to back to absurdly funny. Also, kudos to the two young actresses playing his daughters; their horrified expressions were spot-on.
• "Everybody dies" "How do you know? I didn't die."
• There was great use of small details in great-aunt Ellen's house, with the running water and the dirty glasses.
• "We have a rule that if they get their f***ing teeth brushed and their g*****n pajamas on by 7:30, I'll read a book."
• I also remember the scene with the dead cat that cures warts. Pretty gross.
• "These boys are racists and they're not nice boys. I think we can still enjoy the stories about the fishin' and the tradin'…"

 

At the same time that the jokes in "Wilfred" are getting funnier, the overall theme is getting clearer.  Each episode seems to be about Wilfred teaching Ryan a new life lesson, usually by the use of shocking behavior that puts in Ryan in situations ranging from highly uncomfortable to borderline life threatening.  We are witnessing a man who is forced to get off his butt and do something with his life; to act rather than be acted upon; to fully engage with others for the right reasons. And also fart jokes. Lots and lots of fart jokes.

"Respect" headed into the darkest parts of black comedy, with most of the humor dealing with death (including suicide), and the cynical view that most people do good things only because of how they want to be perceived by others. Of course it still wasn't entirely clear why Wilfred needed to snort up pills and pretend to smother an elderly lady with a pillow in order to make that point. But it was pretty hilarious watching him do it.

• With an admirable economy of words, Nick was quickly established as an insufferable "It's all about the kids" douche bag.  "Actually, I think of myself as post-racial." Barf.
• Dog behavior observations: "A walk, Ryan, which by definition means no destination. Even a cat knows that."
• Old people being disgusting and saying really dirty things. Wow, haven't heard that trope a million times.
• It was Bobby who was exposed to the mumps by kissing Millicent.
• "Maybe you should go back to where you came from. Right over there where you were standing. Before you came over here."
• There were some excellent quips from Wilfred regarding Ryan's slacker lifestyle, such as noting his status as a "land baron" in Farmville.
• It is my fervent hope that they develop this not-so-nice side of  Jenna.
• Final fart joke: too obvious to be funny, or so obvious it was funny?