Taylor Schilling is Dagny Taggart, a strong, independent woman keeping the family railroad business (railroads being the dominant mode of transportation in AS’s alternate future due to restrictive oil prices) alive despite the irresponsibility, short-sightedness, and political exploitation of her co-manager and brother James.

A major disaster on one of the lines leads Dagny to replace the tracks with a new kind of steel alloy developed by like-minded entrepreneur Hank Rearden (Grant Bowler), who shares Dagny’s independent spirit and is similarly being worn down through a miasma of regulations spearheaded by corrupt politicians and competitors. And against this backdrop is the ongoing disappearance of the country’s most productive members and the pervasive question, “Who is John Galt?”

I didn’t get a screening invitation to the film; I paid to see and went with a friend and die-hard fan of Ayn Rand. And while I agree with Rand on many of her points, both my friend and I left the theater disappointed. Atlas doesn’t quite deserve the scathing reviews it’s been getting, but it’s not a good film either—regardless of where you stand on Rand’s philosophy.

This week, both Mercy and Law and Order: SVU featured some pretty awesome guest stars including Michael Imperioli’s appearance on Mercy and Lost’s Naveen Andrews and Studio 60′s Sarah Paulson on Law and Order: SVU. Courtesy of your friends at NBC, we’ve got clips from both shows to help you figure out what you missed or if you saw the episodes, help you relive the magic.

In the videos, you’ll learn more about Imperioli’s appearance on Mercy with a preview clip and an interview with the actor. For Law & Order: SVU, we’ve got clips of both Naveen Andrews and Sarah Paulson at work showing scenes from the episode. As we like all of these actors, and you should also, there’s no reason not watch both of these shows for all the action, drams and suspense.

You can watch the clips and recaps after the break or head on over to NBC’s website and enjoy full episodes of both of these shows.

Even though NBC may not want to extend the life of some of its shows such as Trauma, it still seems to like Mercy and wants to keep it around. So, with that in mind, we’ve got some clips for you from this week’s episode, which airs Wednesday.

To help and because we care, we’ve included a bit of info with each clip to sort of set them up for you. According to our friends at NBC, we’re supposed to pay special attention to the second clip, where Veronica’s mother is able to guess a secret that will change Veronica’s life. And in the final clip, you get to go on the set with the cast and this week’s guest stars, the Real Housewives.

In the clips you’ll be able to “find out what the ladies thought about the Mercy cast and which cast member spearheaded the effort to get the housewives on.” Now that sounds like fun, doesn’t it? Check out all the video clips after the jump. Mercy airs Wednesdays at 9/8C on NBC.

Our friends at NBC have provided us with even more sneak peeks at their upcoming shows Trauma, Mercy and the returning juggernaut Law & Order, back this year for its landmark 20th season. We’ve got seven new videos to share with you today. The first ones come from Trauma and feature an action packed look behind the scenes giving you a first hand look at the role of the first responders. The second provides a closer look at the men and women who are first on the scene and run into the danger to help you.

The third Trauma video talks more about the “raw emotion” of the show and how its stories unfold with emotion and depth. Moving on to Mercy, the videos from that show give you more insight into the characters on this drama. First, the cast talks more about their characters and their stories. Next are interviews with Jamie Lee Kirchner and Taylor Schilling who explain their characters and why they love them so much. Finaly, we’ve got a video from Law and Order where the cast and series creator Dick Wolf talk about the legacy of the show now that its starting its 20th season.

All in all lots of great info on some new shows and a new insight into a show that’s been around for quite some time. Be sure to check out all the videos after the jump. Trauma premieres on Monday, September 28th, Mercy on September 23rd and Law & Order returns on September 25th.

We’ve been following some of NBC’s new Fall shows pretty closely here at The Flickcast. One of the ones that seems pretty interesting is a hostpital show called Mercy. What makes this one more interesting than the crop of other medical shows out there? Good question. Read on.

Mercy has a couple interesting things going for it. First, its told from the perspective of nurses. And not just any nurses, but a trio of brash, confident and compassionate babes including Iraq war vet Veronica, played by Taylor Schilling, and newcomer Chloe, played by the delightful Michelle Trachtenberg of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Plus, the show is created and exec. produced by Liz Heldens of Friday Night Lights and Gretchen Berg & Aaron Harberts of Pushing Daises, two other quality shows.

Does all this mean Mercy will be a sure-fire hit? Not necessarily. But with all these elemets in place, it sure has a good chance. Mercy premieres on Wednesday, September 23rd at 8/7C. Until then, be sure to check out this latest promo after the jump.