On the bright side, this might mean that Thomas Harris has finally given up on Lecter. (Remember, he wrote Hannibal Rising only to prevent a movie prequel from being made by somebody else.) If he's willing to let them turn his fondest creation into a TV show, maybe he's ready to move on. And a new novel by Harris that…

Hannibal Lecter is the ultimate example of a character ruined by too much backstory. As a supporting role, he's sensational, but he wilts completely when put under the spotlight—not surprisingly, because this isn't a character that holds up to scrutiny.

Yeah, but that David Schwimmer joke sums up everything I dislike about those Jean/Reiss episodes. Even "Lisa's Sax," which I like fine, isn't totally exempt.

I have. It was very informative.

For those who are interested in the Columbia/David Begelman case, you should check out the book Indecent Exposure by David McClintick. It's probably the best true-life business thriller I've ever read—it kept me reading past three in the morning, unable to believe what was happening. Just twist after twist after twist.

"Simpson Tide." I hate to say it, but most of the latter-day Jean/Reiss episodes are pretty weak, although I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for "The Springfield Files."

If I were a writer on this show, I'd be furiously taking notes.

That oughta hold the little lesbos.

Same here. Maybe it's a sentimental thing, but Last Crusade is just a perfect movie.

Gessen and Kunkel's novels were also major disappointments, at least as far as sales were concerned. Here's hoping that Harbach does better—it sounds like he's written a really good novel.

There's also the classic definition by John Hughes: "A geek is a guy who has everything going for him, but he's just too young. By contrast, a nerd will always be a nerd."

And let's not forget Todd's review of "Still Missing" by Chevy Stevens, which might be my favorite thing ever. (The review, not the book.)

The X-Files is possibly my favorite show of all time, but it has too many awful episodes to count. The first one I thought of was "The Walk," which is almost viscerally unpleasant. (Although I was glad to see that John Shiban finally got his act together to start a good run on Breaking Bad.)

As I discovered while reading my dad's old paperback collections of these comics, pretty much every tired comic strip that overstayed its welcome was brilliant back in the day: Andy Capp, B.C., The Wizard of Id, Dennis the Menace, even Family Circus. There's a reason why they stuck around for decades, even if it's…

I approve of this firstie.

Favorite Far Side cartoon?

I second the nomination for 10:13. 11:21 would work, too, but that's probably too late for folks on the east coast.

I'm going to cast my obligatory vote for Very by the Pet Shop Boys. Arguably their best album, or at least their most emotional and accessible, and the last time they cracked the Billboard top 20.

Same here. I listened to that song hundreds of times (I found it somewhere online) before I realized it wasn't the album version.

I got it from Borders for $5. It really, really holds up beautifully.