5. Ryan Adams recorded original music for the show.
The title track of Ryan Adams & the Cardinals' just-released EP, Follow the Lights, will be featured in the show's Christmas episode. ''Even though Entertainment Weekly doesn't like our show, Ryan Adams does,'' jokes Appelbaum. ''He said he would record for us. We were like, 'Jesus Christ. That's amazing.' He literally recorded as he was watching images from the show. We were in the studio with him.'' Adams recently shot a video for ''Follow the Lights'' — which starts in Physical Phil's band room and stars the show's cast.
6. More character development!
Last season, producers had to jam 22 episodes' worth of plot into six hours. This season, with 13 scripts penned before the writers' strike, they're looking forward to getting under their characters' skins. ''Our job is to bring people together and tear them apart in ways that are compelling and believable and thought-provoking and funny,'' Rosenberg says. To that end, they'll continue to stoke the series' burning mystery — who the hell is Sam's father? ''I'm not gonna say when you'll find out,'' Appelbaum says, ''but we're very mindful of not dragging it out to the point where we piss off the audience. André and I worked on Alias, too... We know our plan now, and I think when we do reveal it, it'll come at exactly the right time.''
They'll also try to spin other sudsy storylines to keep you satisfied. There's what Appelbaum calls ''the battle for Ikey's soul,'' as Big Cat tries to pull him over to the dark side: ''Big Cat's villainy is a great time bomb we have waiting to go off throughout the season. Is he really as evil as you think? What are his intentions with Hannah? When will his true colors present themselves?'' And there's Owen's attempt to reconcile with his wife and Ikey through an ''Infidelity Tour'': ''We were literally like, 'What would be the worst possible idea to drag someone through after his wife cheats on him with his best friend?''' Appelbaum says. ''What if you took him to every place that the two of them slept together and had to relive it in graphic detail?'' Adds Nemec, ''It seemed a lot more entertaining than just EMDR/somatic therapy for Owen.''
7. You can debate the dialogue again!
Say the characters talk either stiltedly or slangily — EW's Ken Tucker did — but the producers stand by their words. ''The funniest part about the whole thing,'' Nemec says, ''is we know a lot of people that talk this way. So whether it's stilted or not, it's the way we communicate with each other, it's language that's just very familiar to us.''
''Even if it is melodramatic, we're human beings — we're melodramatic,'' Appelbaum says. He points to a comparison the show frequently receives: It's like a grown-up Dawson's Creek. ''The truth is, when Dawson's Creek premiered, it was reviled by the critics for putting that dialogue in the mouths of these teenagers. 'Who talks like this?' It's a different version of the same criticism we get. We'll take Dawson's six years on the air, happily.''
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