Doctor Who:

Someone posting over at the IMDB forums claims to have seen "The End Of Time Part 1," and says Bernard Cribbins and the Doctor travel to "the vast wastelands of London" as well as visiting the Time War. Wilf wants to save his granddaughter, Donna, who's once again struggling with her own mind. The villains are Joshua Naismith and his wife, who resurrect the Master as part of a plan to bring back the Time Lords, but this is just part of a larger scheme. At the end of the first part, the Time Lords materialize through the Immortality Gate and arrest the Master. And meanwhile, Donna's eyes are on fire. Take of all this with an immense grain of salt. [Gallifrey Base]

Meanwhile, Russell T. Davies explains more about what's going on in this episode:

The Doctor went through hell, on Mars. I think its important to note the angry, vengeful Doctor glimpsed in that climax is gone-that was the point of Adelaide's death; she saved the future, and saved the Doctor from himself. He was brought back to his senses. And as you've seen from the Children in Need clip, a lot of the old, chipper Doctor has been restored. Which is only right and proper, because that's the Doctor we want to see in his final story - the classic hero, the good man, the lovely funny, skinny fellow in the suit and trainers... and as ever, there's a melancholy beneath the smile - he's still aware that he's facing the end of his song, and the ominous four knocks. He can't know whether this means regeneration or actual death - and neither can you, cos we might have some tricks up our sleeves!

And he adds, in reference to the Master:

In 'The Sound of Drums" and 'Last of the Time Lords', he mirrored the Doctor by being powerful, suave and megalomaniac. Now, it's a new opposite - lost and raw and savage. Something's gone very wrong with his return - you'll have to watch to find out what! - but that x-ray effect see in the trailer, where he's all skull and bones, is the just the start of the trouble....imagine all the pent up forces of a Time Lord body - artron energy, regeneration energy, all the stuff - ripping open and broken loose. A dying timelord is a terrifying thing! So with the Master dying, the Doctor's end approaching, and both determined to survive, they're hurtling along an almighty collision course. And that's just part one!

Also, Minnie Hooper is helping Wilf track the Doctor down because people have had bad dreams, and Wilf is hiding out at a church. And there's a mystery involving a silver cloak, which Wilf knows about. And the Doctor gets strapped down to a table at one point. [Doctor Who Magazine via Fanatical Whovian]

Meanwhile, RTD tells Time Out Magazine that this episode includes the homeless in London getting burgers from a charity van, and Donna's middle-class family sitting down for turkey dinner, and then the obscenely rich Naismith family, with a mansion and servants. And then of course there are monsters and a chase, and all of these elements are leading in one direction. [Life The Universe And Combom]

Lost:

Rumor has it that some of the leaks and set reports from this show's final season have caused some scenes to be reshot and changed. According to unnamed sources, nothing major has been reworked, but some minor details were changed to differ from what's leaked out so far. Bear in mind, this is only a rumor, and there aren't actually any details about what's allegedly been revamped. [SpoilersLost]

There's a pretty huge spoiler hidden as an Easter egg on the new season five BluRay set: This scene breakdown of the end of the last episode, in which apparently we were originally supposed to see Jack's group absorbed by a white light, and then Richard Alpert sees a mushroom cloud off in the distance. [SpoilersLost]

An unnamed source claims that Richard Alpert meets both the Man In Black and Jacob in his flashback, and Richard Alpert fights Jacob in the 1800s, and a "special" knife is involved. [SpoilersLost]

And here are some new promo pics of our castmembers, which aren't spoilery unless you consider who's included among the cast. [Doc
Arzt]

Day Of The Triffids:

Here are a ton of new promo pics from this British remake, which airs in the U.K. on Dec. 28 and 29. Cannot wait! [Den Of Geek]

Jonah Hex:

There are some reshoots going on, and apparently they include some scenes with Jonah's wife, who hasn't previously been included in the film. At least, that's what people are speculating based on a new casting call:

[CASSIE] - wife of 'Jonah Hex' (Josh Brolin). Native American. Pretty, young, sexy.

[TRAVIS] - age 9 (to play younger)... Must be a match to Josh Brolin and Native American 'Cassie'.

[JEB TURNBULL] - son of 'Quentin Turnbull' (John Malkovich). 30 - 35. Skinny, southern accent. Needs one or two days for prosthetics.

[PRESIDENT ANDREW JOHNSON] - 50-60. Look alike, if possible.

[ADVISOR] - to President Johnson. Younger, 1870's version of a "West Wing" character.

[DEAD GUY] - late 20s/30s. Scary looking.. May need a day for prosthetics/possible make-up.

[SpoilerTV-Movies]

The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnassus:

Terry Gilliam talks about his inspiration in a couple of new interviews, one of which is partly in Russian except the parts where he talks:

The Hobbit:

Peter Jackson hopes that both Hugo Weaving and Cate Blanchett will return for this duology, even though Blanchett's character, Galadriel, doesn't appear in the book. [MTV]

Nightmare On Elm Street:

It seems like they're filming a new scene in a diner where Nancy (the main character?) works, judging from a new casting call, seeking the diner's owner and waitress. Plus some teenagers hanging out there. It sounds as though this additional scene is meant to clear up something that confused test-screening audiences. [SpoilerTV-Movies and BloodyDisgusting via IGN]

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows:

The cast still hasn't shot the infamous epilogue scene yet, and they're waiting to hear if they'll do it themselves or have other actors replace them as adults. [MTV]

And even as this two-part movie is filming, there are tons of on-the-fly rewrites and new scripts and last-minute changes because "We're terrified we're not going to get it right," says Daniel Radcliffe. Also, after Rupert Grint's bout with swine flu, his new name is Pigboy Heart Attack. [MTV]

Fringe:

A casting call went out for a guest star whom we'll meet in episode 2x16:

[HEATH] 30-35... Interesting look, lean and wiry. Open ethnicity.

[SpoilerTV]

Asked whether Peter's mom is from our universe or Over There, Jeff Pinkner replies cryptically: "In a show exploring two alternate universes, there is more than one of everything… and everyone." [EW]

Chuck:

This season, there's more international travel, taking Chuck out of the U.S. and dropping him into hotspots. And don't worry, Chuck's still a bumbling hero even though he knows kung-fu. His emotions interfere with his new abilities, and the new intersect is sometimes "fritzing out." The first episode is a "heist episode," In which Chuck and Sarah have to rappel Mission Impossible-style into a vault. One thing that Chuck is getting better at, though? Lying. Which is both good and bad. [TV Guide]

Sarah will go from being Chuck's caretaker to something more like his boss this season. Chuck's training as a real spy will bring up more backstory about Sarah's own entry into the spy biz, including her real name. [TV Guide again]

Flashforward:

There are a ton of casting calls for episodes 15 and 16. In episode 15, we'll meet Spiller, a white guy whose affable veneer can't hide the fact that he's a dick. And Lilliana, an older Latina woman who distrusts the FBI. There are also a couple of hospital nurses who encounter a frantic man searching for his loved one who's a patient, a tattooed Latino tough guy mechanic, a motherly Japanese waitress who takes an interest in a female customer, a mysterious dreadlocked man named Geoff, a driver on a sensitive assignment, and a teenager who offers to help an obvious drunk guy. (Mark? Does Mark get drunk and then wind up in the hospital?)

And then in episode 16, we meet Secret Service agent Freddie Ochoa, who gossips about a former colleague, and Marlene, the world-weary director of a group foster home. Plus Daniel, a Korean family man, Wanda, an African American mother, Raymond, an African American father, a federal prosecutor, a judge, a stenographer, a local TV host, a local TV weather girl, an older drunk who startles the wrong person, and a cute young guy and the girl he gets to know better in a humorous scene. Then there's Kat, a 27-year-old girl next door who's hiding a dark secret. [SpoilerTV and SpoilerTV]

Heroes:

Nathan's death is really "the big one that sticks" this time around, says Adrian Pasdar. And then he adds, "You never really know with this show." [MultipleVerses]

Just because Gretchen let Claire go off and become a carny, doesn't mean we've seen the last of her, says actor Madeline Zima. Right now, Gretchen is doing the whole "if you love someone set them free" thing, but it's not going to work out that great, reading between the lines. [TV Guide]

Additional reporting by Mary Ratliff.

Triffids (The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham): Although the bioengineered Triffids appear sentient and have a deadly sting, humanity farms them for their oil. But when most of humanity is blinded by a meteor shower, Triffids take advantage of mankind’s sudden weakness and begin to break free and turn on their former captors. It was made into the classic 1962 film and a 1981 BBC television serial.

The Vines (The Ruins): Vines may seem like a fairly mundane feature of the ruins of a Mayan temple. But these vines are deadly, eating away at human flesh and leaving their spores to germinate inside the human body. And they’re tricky creatures, too, causing cell phones to ring and mimicking human voices.

Killer Tomatoes (Attack of the Killer Tomatoes): After years of smothering our burgers in ketchup, the tomatoes take their revenge. Giant tomatoes invade the cities of the world, chowing down on the tomato-eating populace.

The Thing (The Thing From Another World): When the US Air Force discovers the body of a plant-based alien frozen in ice, they accidentally thaw it, leaving it to wreak havoc across Alaska. The Thing needs human blood to reproduce, but fortunately, like so many killer plants, is vulnerable to electricity.

The Seeds (Doctor Who “Seeds of Doom”): Another alien lands in an icy part of the world, this time Antarctica. Scientists discover a pair of giant seed pods and bring them back to their base for study. But as they thaw, instead of eating the scientists, they sting one of them, turning him into a murderous plant creature.

The Sarlaac (Star Wars): The Sarlaac has puzzled xenobiologists with its plant and animal qualities, but it is best known for its digestive system. A humanoid could spend a thousand years in the sarlaac’s digestive tract before being fully digested, and, while it doesn’t eat frequently, it has been known to use its tentacles to grab onto its prey.

Biollante (Godzilla vs Biollante): Biolante starts life as a rose-like monster, with constricting vines and stinging teeth along her bud. But Godzilla’s atomic beam mutates her further, giving her a giant head with an enormous jaw and set of teeth, spines running down her back, and four roots for legs. In either form, she is bent on defeating Godzilla.

Lyekka (Lexx): Lyekka is a carnivorous plant who, upon encountering the Lexx, scans Stanley Tweedle’s mind and takes the form of his school crush. She is fond of Stanley, but has been known to dine on other space travelers.

The Weeds (“The Weeds” by Stephen King): When Jordy Verrill discovers a meteorite, he sees dollar signs, thinking the alien rock will pay of his bank account. But the plant-like organism living on the meteorite quickly takes over his body, covering it in tenacious extraterrestrial grass. Unable to do anything about the plant creatures transforming his body, Verrill turns to suicide, but the weeds are undeterred, running across his property and out into the world. The story was adapted for the King anthology film Creepshow.

Pod People (Invasion of the Body Snatchers): The people of Santa Mira, California notice something strange about their loved ones, who look the same but no longer display any emotions. Soon, some of the townspeople discover the truth: huge pod plants are growing exact duplicates of existing humans, duplicates that go on to kill and replace their human counterparts.

Tybo (Lost in Space “The Great Vegetable Rebellion”): When Dr. Smith arrives on a planet of sentient plants, he makes the mistake of picking a flower and incurring the wrath of Tybo the giant carrot. Though hostile, Tybo isn’t exactly murderous. He just wants to turn the Robinsons into trees and Dr. Smith into a stalk of celery.

The Trees (Evil Dead): The first Evil Dead film has one of the more disturbing sequences of attack by vegetation when Cheryl is attacked and brutally raped by a demon-possessed tree. In Evil Dead II, Bobby Jo is also attacked by trees, although in a less horrific fashion.

The Doll’s Eye (Minority Report): When John Anderton goes to visit researcher Iris Hineman, he ends up tangoing with one of her more active vines, which delivers a poison into his bloodstream. Fortunately, Dr. Hineman keeps the antidote hand.

Audrey II (Little Shop of Horrors): Downtrodden Seymour Krelborn has a change in fortune when he brings the unusual plant Audrey II (named for his beloved coworker Audrey) to the flower shop where he works. He is somewhat less delighted when he realizes the plant needs human blood to survive, though he lets himself get talked into bringing her fresh human meat. Little does he know that Audrey II is, in fact, an alien bent on world domination.

Pa’u Zotoh Zhaan (Farscape): Zhaan is a Delvian, a species of sentient, meat-eating plants. If deprived of meat for too long, Delvians emit a toxic pollen which paralyzes potential victims with sneezing, making them easy prey. Zhaan herself turned to religion while serving a sentence for murder and, while generally a patient and tolerant person, does possess a darker side.

Swamp Thing (Swamp Thing): Following an explosion in his lab, chemist Alec Holland dies in a swamp, where his personality and memories are transferred to the swamp vegetation, becoming sentient. The elemental Swamp Thing becomes a fierce defender of humanity and the environment. Some of Swamp Thing’s foes are also plant-based, such as the Floronic Man, who was once human, but has gradually transformed himself into a plant.

All the Plants on Earth (The Happening): One day, the whole of the plant kingdom apparently decides that it’s had it with humanity and decides to do something about it. The plants release a neurotoxin that causes the affected to commit suicide, stopping when an adequate proportion of humanity is killed.

Tree of Life is an effort to construct a huge genetic family tree connecting all the life forms on Earth. Determining how long a species has been a species by comparing its molecular evolution to similar life forms is an important part of figuring out all those relationships. While studying this, the Yale team figured out that plants with very short generations (that is, with the shortest "seed to stem" time) had very high rates of molecular evolution. Large, woody plants that reproduced at a more stately pace were not as genetically varied from one and other. To anyone who understands natural selection, this doesn't come as a big surprise, but plants act a bit differently from animals in this regard, so patterns of plant evolutionary speed had been elusive.

What can we do with this information? For one thing, it will be a major boon to Tree of Life and other genetic cataloging projects. But jump forward 20 years. Imagine computers powerful enough to create a virtual plant based on a fully sequenced genome. Imagine running that plant through tens of thousands of generations (even plants that usually evolve slowly), with the ability to set the parameters within the virtual environment. Instead of genetically modifying a plant by tweaking a base pair here and there, you could create genomes customized to specific conditions, refined by all those iterations of natural selection. Sure, we don't have the ability to take the resulting virtual genome and make it into a living thing, but we might in 20 years.

Which is all well and good until the night janitor decides to run some virtual mice through a few million generations in an ultra-competitive environment filled with deadly predators, then manages to process the resulting MegaMice through the sequencing/cloning machine. Image by: ausiegall.

Key To Rapid Evolution In Plants: Reproduce Early And Often. [Science Daily]