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 Within the past week, fans of TV and film actress Lorraine Toussaint have seen ups and downs with news about her projects. Drama series "Forever," in which she co-stars as weathered police lieutenant Joanna Reece, was recently cancelled by ABC. Meanwhile, Toussaint scored a Critics' Choice award nomination for her role as the devious Vee Parker in Season 2 of Netflix darling "Orange is the New Black," and there's been buzz about the performance earning an Emmy nod as well. We spoke with Toussaint about her recent work and outlook on the industry. Jai Tiggett: Vee was easily the most terrifying character in "Oitnb" Season 2. Can you tell...

As Forever's first run nears its end, will it be the last we see of Henry and co., or is there a chance it could be revived for season 2?

This review contains spoilers.

1.19 Punk Is Dead

The concluding episodes of a show can be tricky, I’ve concluded. Generally, they can either go all-out to set up the finale, or they can cruise up to the final show like it’s nothing special.

Punk Is Dead did neither of these things, instead choosing to tell a typical Forever mystery and then tack some dark foreboding on the end, quite cleverly.

As Forever goes, it actually demonstrated well how the show has developed in terms of characters and writing, because everyone here is very relaxed about what they’re doing and the story flowed along very naturally.

I did, however, take some convincing about some narrative points, especially in regard to the Punk era.

As you’ll see in the preview clip below, there aren’t a lot of angles Henry can hope to twist around the truth when he’s caught holding a murder weapon in his own basement. Once he decides there’s no avoiding the truth, or at least some truth, it’s hard to figure out how he’s going to put a good spin on the fact that the murder weapon is his. And, that’s just a small piece of what’s in store on the next episode of Forever, “Skinny Dipper,” airing December 9th.

Easily one of the best new shows of the season, what Forever has done best, in my opinion, is balance the long arc of the show. We may now be in an era which demands that no show can simply be a procedural and run on episodic content, but this one has managed...

Forever settles into a generic groove by its second episode. Here's Billy's review of Look Before You Leap...

This review contains spoilers.

1.2 Look Before You Leap

It was hard not to be mildly disappointed with the first regular season episode of Forever, because Look Before You Leap seemed very mechanical for the most part. The charm evident in the pilot all but vaporised, and we were presented with a by-the-numbers case that wouldn’t have seemed out of place in an eighties cop show.

What we really wanted to see was the relationship between Detective Jo Martinez and Dr Henry Morgan to develop, but it just didn't. Jo simply sees Henry as a fast track to detecting results and drags him around like her favourite accessory. It didn’t help that they introduced a new superior for Jo in the form of Lt. Joanne Reece (Lorraine Toussaint), who was the...

Some television-related news you can use... First, Lorraine Toussaint ("Orange is the New Black) has landed a series-regular role on ABC’s upcoming fall drama "Forever," playing a Lt. Joanna Reece, who's described as a "weathered," 50-something police vet who’s "seen it all," and who's also Alana de la Garza’s Det. Jo Martinez. "Forever" stars Ioan Gruffudd as a New York City medical examiner who studies the dead, because he is secretly immortal. "Forever" will air Tuesdays at 10/9c on ABC. Second, the success of Maya Rudolph's one-off variety show which aired in May, has made NBC consider bringing it back for another run, the network...

Orange Is the New Black star Lorraine Toussaint is going straight for ABC's Forever. Toussaint, who joined the cast of Oitnb for season two as the villain Vee, will play a cop on the new ABC drama, E! News has confirmed. Toussaint has joined Forever as Lieutenant Joanna Reece the grizzled boss of Alana de la Garza's Detective Jo Martinez. Forever follows Ioan Gruffudd as a medical examiner who can't be killed. Judd Hirsch plays his friend and confidant. Orange Is the New Black fans, we know what you're thinking. Is this it for Vee? Well, spoilers: The character was last seen escaping from prison. Once she was out, she made it to the side of the road where she was run over by Miss Rosa (Barbara...

Out: Prison jumpsuit. In: Gun and badge.

That’ll be the case for Orange Is the New Black‘s Lorraine Toussaint now that she’slanded a series-regular role on ABC’s upcoming fall drama Forever.

Related Orange Is the New Black Stars Pick Most Memorable Season 2 Scenes

[Warning: Oitnb spoiler alert ahead.] When we last saw Toussaint’s character Vee on Netflix’s women’s prison dramedy, she’d been run down by a van midway through an escape attempt.

With Vee possibly headed for that great prison yard in the sky, Touissant was freed up to portray Forever’s Lt.

Closed Circuit follows the aftermath of a terrorist attack that kills dozens of Londoners in Borough Market and leaves the city, along with the government, hungry for justice. Authorities quickly apprehend Farroukh Erdogan (Denis Moschitto), a family man with ties to a local terrorist cell, and prepare for one of the most highly publicized criminal trials in British history. Lawyers Martin Vickers (Eric Bana) and Claudia Simmons-Howe (Rebecca Hall) are appointed as public defense counsel and the accused’s special advocate, respectively – meaning that Vickers is set to defend Erdogan in open court, while Simmons-Howe will represent Erdogan during private session (where top secret information could be revealed).

However, when Joanna Reece (Julia Stiles), a journalist from the New York Times, suggests to Vickers that the death of his friend (and ...

Click to continue reading ‘Closed Circuit’ Review...