It's always a challenge for an actor to play a well-known part on TV and then to start over on a new show as someone entirely different. Audiences will always be tempted to see them as that first character, leading to typecasting and premature cancellations of new projects. However, recently, actors like Ray Romano have turned this theory on its head. After nine (nine!) seasons on Everybody Loves Raymond, he's deftly crafted a new persona on Men of a Certain Age that, for all intents and purposes, is the anti-Ray Barone. As the second season comes to a close tonight on TNT (and as we count down to the return of Breaking Bad), we take a look at other performers this summer who moved from a career-defining role to successfully portraying its polar opposite. (Yes, we know Sons of Anarchy isn't really a summer show, but we couldn't resist.)

Tags: Aaron Paul, Angels in America, Big Love, Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston, Charlie Hunnam, Everybody Loves Raymond, Justin Kirk, Katey Sagal, Malcolm in the Middle, Married with Children, Mary Louise Parker, Men of a Certain Age, Queer as Folk, Ray Romano, Sons of Anarchy, Weeds

Has there ever been such an A-list cast assembled for a single TV show? Well, maybe A-list isn't the right word, but Ray Romano, Scott Bakula and Andre Braugher are all pretty much TV royalty, and now the three of them are all co-starring in a single series. I wouldn't call myself a fan of any of them, per se, but they're certainly all talented, and I'm sure they all have their staunch supporters. So it's good to see that their show isn't a total train wreck, but is actually funny and sad and dark. Not, like, Californication dark, but dark nonetheless.

Tags: Andre Braugher, Men of a Certain Age, Ray Romano, review, Scott Bakula, TNT

The worst possible thing that could happen at a network upfront event actually occurred this morning for TBS and TNT... and it turned out to be the best possible thing that could've happened. In front a packed house of advertisers, media buyers, network executives and journalists, the meticulously choreographed presentation ground to a screeching halt not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times due to technical difficulties that prevented the giant video screens from displaying picture. But what could've been a devastating embarrassment for the networks resulted in a series of live, unrehearsed performances that had more electricity than any of the sitcoms previewed by NBC, Fox and ABC earlier this week.

Tags: conan, falling skies, franklin & bash, george lopez, major crimes, perception, ray romano, tbs upfront, the wedding band, tnt upfront