HBO's Luck, a drama about the big bad horse racing scene, has been warmly received by most media critics, but lax production standards have roused critics less concerned with quality acting and believable narratives. According to the New York Observer, two horses used in filming were euthanized following on set injuries, prompting PETA to put the HBO show on blast. "Perhaps if producers had considered the proved safety protocols that we would have suggested, these horses would still be alive," the animal rights organization wrote in a blog post from a few weeks ago. PETA may be controversial, but considering the generally accepted moral standard for animal safety in media production, its disappointment doesn't seem so histrionic. 

Considering the scope and length of the Song of Ice and Fire books, it's nice that HBO has gone all in with forthcoming seasons of Game of Thrones. Whether or not they want to foot the bill, there's too much merch to sell and too many awards to collect to all of a sudden get frugal. In anticipation of GOT's April 1 return, there's a new teaser that sets the emotional tone of where season two is about to go: more intrigue, confusion, fractured relationships and backstabbing and so forth.

The return to Westeros is upon us, as HBO announced that the second season of Game of Thrones will debut on April 1. Adapting A Clash of Kings, the second book in A Song of Ice and Fire, this season will feature twice as much intrigue and drama as the first, especially in light of *** *t***'s death (I'm trying to be delicate with the spoilers). If you forgot where season 1 ended, here's a quick primer: everything is awful and no one is happy. You're ready to go!

Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelly, Jr., and Jason Baldwin, better known as the West Memphis 3, were convicted in 1994 for the murders of three teenagers in Arkansas. For years they had maintained their innocence, and their story was documented in the groundbreaking films Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations, both of which aired on HBO. The Paradise Lost films pointed to critical flaws in the prosecution's cases against the young men, and sparked national efforts to free the three men. In August 2011, after serving over eighteen years in prison, the West Memphis 3 won their appeals and were released. Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory chronicles the final chapter in their story.

Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime, the 2010 book co-authored by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, is getting the made-for-not-TV-but-HBO treatment. The film wisely cut the run-on subtitle, but it's also limiting its focus on the Republican party and the tumultuous McCain/Palin campaign. And this afternoon HBO has revealed the first look at the drama starring Ed Harris as John McCain and Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin.

● Drunk History's slurred retelling of "A Night Before Christmas," starring Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes and, as Santa Claus, Jim Carrey, should help get you into the holiday spirit. [FunnyOrDie]

Of the over one-hundred billion people who have ever lived on earth, one is worthy of an HBO biopic more than the rest: former Washington, DC mayor Marion Barry. The man’s life was full of power, intrigue, crime, sex, drugs, violence, and the Ramada Inn--a perfect concoction for appointment-viewing television. In what amounts to good news for lovers of entertaining things, The Washington Post reports Spike Lee and HBO have a Barry biopic in the works, with Eddie Murphy attached to star as the mayor.

Steven Soderbergh's long-awaited film based on the later years of the famously extravagant pianist will star Michael Douglas in the lead role and Matt Damon as his young lover, Scott Thorson.

When you read Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections did you think to yourself, "Man, this story about old people and Midwestern family would be a great TV show"? Someone at HBO did. Franzen hit the New Yorker Festival yesterday for a talk with the mag's Editor-in-Chief David Remnick where he confirmed he is working on an adaptation of the book for the network as a four year television series. That's a long bet on an unproven show.

If you haven't seen the HBO comedy How to Make It in America, shame on you. And if you're a young, hip New Yorker who hasn't seen it, then pack your bags and get out. HBO knows a good thing when it has one, which is why they gave the show a second season, despite not-that-great numbers. So in the lead-up to the Season 2 premiere on October 2, the HBO marketing brain trust is using the internet to its full advantage by dropping a major cameo-stuffed music video, featuring the show's secret weapon, Luis Guzman.