Faithful Eureka viewers will remember that at the end of the most recent episode, Jack Carter got fired as sheriff by the Department of Defense, which gets some veto power over the town's affairs because of all the sensitive zaniness that goes on there.

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.So the first episode back, "Welcome Back, Carter," picks up right where this cliffhanger left off — Jack is taking a job with the Department of Homeland Security, which hires him in spite of his inability to say anything much about his previous job. Meanwhile, the town of Eureka gets a new robot sheriff named Andy, who's just as good natured as Jack, but lacks a certain... intuition.

The replacement-robot-sheriff story was treading on territory I felt like I'd visited many times before, and I was pretty sure I knew where it was heading. After all, it's hardly a spoiler to say that Jack gets his job back at the end of the episode, right? But the "Sheriff Andy" story actually took some turns I wasn't expecting at all, and wound up impressing me quite a bit.

Andy, the android sheriff, starts out as just sort of a one-note joke, but he actually sort of grows as a character over the course of the episode. He's just as much of a silly screw-up as every other character on Eureka, but he's no worse — and the show winds up showing not just his innate niceness, but also his dignity. He's given some chances to prove that he's more than just a tool or a device, and to show that he actually has a choice about being a protector of the town — he's not just following his programming or instructions.

The actual plot of "Welcome Back Carter" is fairly flimsy but entertaining — trees fall down in a very random, yet organized, fashion, and Jack suspects that something weird is going on. (Because, duh. Something weird is always going on.) But the new Sheriff, Andy, refuses to believe that anything unusual is happening — until more objects start falling in random, yet apparently targeted ways.

One thing that jumped out at me about both "Welcome Back Carter" and the second episode, "Your Face Or Mine?" was the fact that the person who's behind the somewhat disruptive shenanigans doesn't really get punished. In both cases, the malefactor causes a ton of disruption and some damage, but winds up apologizing, and gets let off the hook, more or less. Because Eureka is such a good-natured show, even people who break the law and cause mayhem get a slap on the wrist, followed by an understanding hug.

At its core, of course, Eureka really is a show about law enforcement, and the limits of carrying a big stick. Our main character, Jack Carter, is the town sheriff, but he's regularly forced to deal with weird and random occurrences that go way beyond stolen cars and assaults. It's not just that everyone in Eureka is a genius, except for Jack and his deputy, Jo. It's also that the "crimes" Jack confronts are usually at least partly accidents, and they usually stem from abuses of science. And science, the show seems to suggest, was made to be abused. Science loves it! Science is strapped to a bed wearing fishnet stockings and Groucho Marx nose-glasses, begging for more.

Eureka is frequently compared to The Andy Griffith Show, which is one of my favorite shows of all time because Griffith really is all about the abuse of police power. The central dynamic in many Griffith episodes is the debate between Andy and his deputy, Barney Fife — Andy's response to any situation is a pat on the shoulder and a kindly talk, but Barney regularly wants to lock everybody up, and on those rare occasions when Barney gets to carry a gun, he'll shoot first and think about it a few days later. The Andy/Barney dynamic is like a debate over the limits of hard versus soft power — do you keep order in the town of Mayberry through fear and heavy-handedness, or through a sort of gentle folksy paternalism?

And Eureka seems to ask similar questions, only about science. (To some extent, Jack's deputy Jo seems to be more of a hard-ass than Jack, but it's not quite the same as the Andy/Barney thing.) Eureka, the town, is an encapsulation of the scientific community (if only all scientists were geniuses) and the scientific disasters that happen so regularly you can set your watch by them stand for our worst fears about science. And every week, Jack shows that science can run amuck, it's fine, as long as there's an understanding, kindly authority figure there to pat it on the shoulder every now and then.

Jack is much less laid-back and all-knowing than Andy, of course — in the second new episode, airing next week, Jack gets put through a series of tests designed to make sure he's still fit to be sheriff, and he gets plenty flustered and demoralized. He's not just our authority figure, he's also our everyman, scratching his head at what the whiz-kids see fit to throw at him.

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.That episode, "Your Face Or Mine?", is directed by star Colin Ferguson. So the "series of tests" sequence is designed to remove Jack from the main storyline, so he can be behind the cameras instead of in front of them. Meanwhile, Deputy Jo Lupo has already aced the series of tests — further adding to Jack's distress when he's struggling with them — but in the main part of the episode, she faces some difficult tests of her own. Which involve getting Erica Cerra to wear a red dress and act all vampy on top of a piano, among other things.

Eureka's been away so long, I'd forgotten how much fun it could be, and how twisty and surprising its storylines are capable of being. Neither of the two upcoming episodes goes where you think it's going, and that's actually a harder feat than you'd expect. The stories are mostly excuses, though, for our heroes to face huge and bizarre challenges, and to prove that in the end, the human spirit is weirder and stronger than any mad science. And that's not a bad message to spread.

Eureka's back on Syfy, starting tonight at 9 PM.

How is the story arc going forward?

CF: From an acting perspective, what's really nice is about these episodes is that I have these emotional lines, mostly with Jordan, whether she is or isn't going to go to college. Also there's dealing with Salli (who plays Allison) in more of a friendship capacity than in a lover capacity, because she's pregnant. I enjoyed that, and being able to dig deeper on the friendship angle of our relationship.

JP: We wanted to bring in a new love interest for Carter, and change the dynamic that we had traditionally [featured, which was] the two alpha males battling over the alpha female. We wanted to bring in a new character, with the actress Jamie Ray Newman who playing Tess Fontana — who has a history with Allison, they are old friends. But that gets a little tense, when she and Carter begin to develop a romantic connection. Which was really fun to play, and to give Carter a real honest love interest.

CF: Yeah it was a nice change of pace to be both receiving and giving of love with the character, than with the relationship I played with Salli, which is sort of unrequited and confused most of the time. It was nice.

What were you excited to bring out this year?

We wanted to bring in a romantic quality of the show...We wanted Fargo to get a girlfriend, which we've finally done. We wanted to step up the relationship with Jo and Zane and challenge it. Is it a short term thing, or is it something more? And also for Zoe and her boyfriend Marcus, who's at an age now where they are talking about college and whether or not they are going to go to the same place. We got a chance to deepen those connections and relationships.

Other surprises this year included Ferguson getting to direct an episode...

JP: We always wanted to do these smaller stories and by me being able to direct an episode, it pulled me out of the plot, in a way where we actually got to write a smaller, more character driven episode for Erica (who plays Jo).

What are some of your favorite gidgets and gadgets we're going to see this year?

I think that two of my favorite gadgets have to do with the Eureka baby shower for Allison's character and some of the things that the scientists created for her. What does a super absorbent diaper or baby bottle or a bib look like when it's been created at Global Dynamics? What's a maternity dress or shirt look like when its come from the greatest minds in science and technology? I think those are some of my very favorite ideas. There is an aspect of that show that ties into the emotional part of Carter and Alison — it's the backbone of the episode. It's a device that I wish existed, it would be great.

What's the Big Bad this season?

JP: We wanted to have another Big Bad, but we wanted it to be something different and have it sort of tie in some how to the historical aspect of our characters and the town on a personal level. So it's not necessarily a person, its a thing. We don't know what it is. But the question is, is it from out there? Is it man made? But it is coming towards Eureka, and we have to deal with it.

Some of the actors from BSG are appearing on other Syfy shows like Warehouse 13. Will any BSG actors pop up in Eureka?

JP: I would love to have some of them on our show. We've talked about it, there's this concept that focuses on our smart house SARAH, and her desire to not be a housewife to Carter. But to get out and get a job and experience the world. There was an episode in season 2 where she got to download into a smart car for awhile, where she was able to get out and feel the wind in her hair, so to speak, but [we'd like to have an episode] where she manages to become personified. I have an idea of who'd I'd like to play that character, if we ever get the chance to do it. I'll just say that they happen to be on Battlestar Galactica.

And finally I'm sad to say it, but it doesn't look like Ed Quinn, who plays the strong willed Nathan Stark, will be back. They would love to have him back but, it's just not going to happen. But don't give up hope on your Eureka dreams coming true. In fact both Ferguson and Paglia are still rooting for Jack and Allison, and want the two to "earn it," so it sounds like it's going to be a while until we see these two kids back in love, but at least there's faith.

Show co-creator Jaime Paglia looked back at Nathan Stark's place in the series:

Nathan Stark appeared in episode two of our first season (“Many Happy Returns”) and his character experienced a lot of growth in his 30 episodes. He went from being head of Global Dynamics, Allison’s ex-husband, and Carter’s nemesis, to losing his job, winning back the girl, and, ultimately, making peace with Carter in their competition for Allison’s affections. I loved watching his character suffer a great fall, then slowly climb his way back to the top. We got to see Stark in a different light, which for us as writers (and, hopefully, for you as the audience) only deepened our connection to him. Stark was a guy you loved to hate, or hated to love, and his legacy will live on even as we bring in new characters and dramas for our heroes to contend with in the next half of the season.

Many thanks to Ed Quinn for his commitment to making Stark the best he could be.

But, wait; he's really gone? It's not a Battlestar Galactica-esque fake-out in order to bring the character back later in the season? Curtis Kheel, who wrote the most recent episode, doesn't seem to think so:

As for whether Nathan Stark will make future appearances in “Eureka,” there are currently no plans. However, like I said, on “Eureka” you never know when someone might show up again from the dead. We realize that some fans are upset about the loss of his character, but I can assure you that the legacy of Nathan Stark will continue to be a part of our series. He will not be forgotten.

Now I really can't tell if they mean it or laying it on a bit thick in hopes of convincing us that they mean it. Either way, it doesn't stop them teasing what's lying ahead for the show's "season 3.5". Back to Paglia:

With Stark gone and Eva Thorne’s secret agenda soon to be revealed, we are now immersed in what we affectionately refer to as Season 3.5, the back 13 episodes of our 21 episode order. I can promise you that there are big surprises in store... Part of the challenge that we face is crafting a new mystery/mythology for the back half, and this one is unlike anything we’ve done so far.

Luckily, they have some unexpected help, in the form of a new writer joining the show: Joan Weiss, who worked on Journeyman and is therefore alright with us. Show stars Colin Ferguson and Joe Morton will also be taking on new roles in the final 13 episodes of the season, both trying out the director's chair to see how it feels. And, as for that new mythology mentioned above? Perhaps it has something to do with this seemingly random tease:

Oh. And if anyone has information on Mary Perkins, please call the number on the right. The Department of Defense has identified her as a “person of interest” and wants any traces of her whereabouts reported immediately.

Calling the number listed (202-640-3864, if you're interested) may take you on your first steps of a possible Eureka ARG. Here's hoping that Degree For Men isn't the ultimate answer.

[Eureka Unscripted]