A sad thing happened to me last Thursday. ER returned with new episodes — and I forgot. Granted, tornadoes were swirling through town at the time, but I didn't even remember to be irritated that bad weather always seems to strike during prime time. For someone who has watched ER faithfully since its first year, apathy is a bad sign. So, I have mixed feelings about the show coming back for one final season.

Photo credit: Brian Bowen Smith

I'm not sure what happened to my fandom. After all, Maura Tierney's still around.

Photo credit: James Sorensen

Considering all that her character Abby Lockhart has been through, that's quite a feat. Alcoholism, bipolar mom and brother, failed marriage, medical school, unplanned pregnancy, life-threatening childbirth — reading Abby's Wikipedia entry is exhausting. Maybe that's part of the problem. … continue reading