As a television addict suffering onset withdrawal from May Sweeps, I hold to the hope that my favorite returning summer shows offer. Summer 2010 looks to be a great for television. Especially for USA and Syfy. Read on for 5 shows I can’t wait to dive back into this summer. Includes links for those looking to wet their beaks before the fun begins.

A quick list of the 5 shows:

1. Burn Notice Season 4
2. Psych Season 5
3. The IT Crowd Season 4 (and 5!)
4. Eureka Season 4
5. Warehouse 13 Season 2

Burn Notice Season 4

Explore: Official Site, Hulu, Wikipedia, IMDB

Season 3 was very enjoyable and I have high hopes for the next. The show is hitting it’s quality stride, certainly in terms of character development. Sadly, Burn Notice wouldn’t survive without an all-reaching, quasi-good, moreso bad organization that thinks Michael Weston is the dog’s bollocks. In season 4, another organization has taken hold of our favorite tutorial spy to do their bidding. In the previews, there’s hints of a “recruitment,” but I imagine it was their benefits package including veiled threats on Michael’s loved ones. Oh, and it still has Bruce Campbell as Sam Axe.

Psych Season 5

Explore: Official Site, Hulu, Wikipedia, IMDB

My favorite fake psychic and crew imminently returns and I can’t wait.  Psych suffered from a dip in quality towards the end of season 2 and almost the entirety of season 3. The pretense of the series verged on paper thin. However, in season 4, the writers rallied, and the show crawled back into my favorite’s list. And that says a lot, because I’m unforgiving when it comes, well, most things, actually. Season 5 should be riding high on the quality curve, bolstered by good ratings last year.

The IT Crowd Season 4 (and 5!)

Explore: Official Site, Hulu (clips…), Wikipedia, IMDB

The IT Crowd is hilarity. I haven’t seen an episode yet that wasn’t funny. In fact, I’ve watched the entire series, all 18 episodes, no less than 5 times in the last six months as I’ve introduced the show to new people. And I just finished another round this week. Still funny. It’s that crafty Irish bastard. Season 4 is around the corner, and even better, another season has been confirmed for next year! Rock on.

Eureka Season 4

Explore: Official Site, Hulu, Wikipedia, IMDB

Eureka suffers from wild quality fluctuations. Sometimes the show is fantastic, particularly involving character development and back story. Indeed, my favorite episode is 3×04 I Do Over, which you shouldn’t watch if you haven’t seen much of the show. Other times, during the monster of the week episodes, I find myself often uninterested. Season 3 was better than average as the writers brought in a female lead specifically as a romantic interest for Sheriff Carter, giving focus to the relevant underlying character development plots. What’s more there’s a cross-over beween Eureka and Warehouse 13 this season, which I can’t wait for.

Warehouse 13 Season 2

Explore: Official Site, Hulu, Wikipedia, IMDB

This show almost destroyed itself early on in season 1 with the bickering between the two main characters. The writers fixed this practically in a single episode and the resulting elevation in quality generates a pass from me on the unbelievable character development curve. But maybe the lack of air is making me giddy. So if you are new to the show, bear with it through the first handful of episodes of season 1 and push on until the main cast has been assembled (five in all: old guy, young girl, two FBI agents, and the black assistant) and locked into their roles. Season 2 looks to be stellar, and the cross-over with Eureka is just gravy.