Random tracks: Battlestar's end, Jericho's resurrection, etc.

Battlestar Galactica's end
Say it ain't so: The numbing Lost gets to drag on for three more seasons while TV's best show, Battlestar Galactica, will end with season four, which is set to begin in early 2008 — so said the series' producers last week. During season three, they simply felt the story was nearing its natural end, they said. I can understand not wanting to go the X-Files route, but four seasons and less than 100 episodes? Damn you. At least this fall we get a bonus made-for-SCI FI movie, Razor, before season four's 22 episodes. Razor will reportedly go back in time to deal with events aboard the Pegasus.

Jericho resurrected
In a highly unusual move, CBS responded to a fan outcry over the cancellation of Jericho by un-nuking the show, which had suffered from a mid-season hiatus, much as Lost did. CBS has ordered a whopping seven episodes for next season, giving fans a brief window in which to prove their love in ratings. It's a reasonably entertaining show, but why can't this happen to a truly brilliant viewing experience such as Kidnapped? All the Jericho episodes can be viewed for free here.

Kyle XY gets a second season
That show about the boy with no bellybutton (portrayed by Matt Dallas) is getting a second season beginning Monday (June 11) on ABC Family, and he'll apparently be joined by a bellybutton-less grrrl this season. ABC will also air episodes on Fridays. For my money, the other ABC Fam original, Three Moons Over Milford, which was canceled after an eight-episode run, had the edge on this marginally interesting sci-fi diversion.

DRM-free tracks and that guy from the Beatles on iTunes
I don't even want to know what it would cost to upgrade my iTunes library from the locked DRM files to the new, higher-quality offerings, which cost 30 cents more per track and can be used on any device, not just the iPod. A positive step for Apple, no doubt, but 99 cents per track felt so right. An upgrade to iTunes 7.2 is required to use the new files. In another coup for Apple, the Paul McCartney library has just been added to the store. Not a big "Macca" fan here, but I immediately downloaded "Hope of Deliverance," a breezy gem from his 1993 album Off the Ground that had stuck with me through the years, even though I heard it only a few times on the radio.