Showtime Renews 'United States of Tara' and 'Nurse Jackie'

These are two of the best dark TV comedies in a month of Sundays, and even though both are only in the second week of their second seasons, Showtime has already put Seasons Three on the menu. And Comcast customers across the country can watch them free through Sunday.

Nurse Jackie stars The Sopranos' Edie Falco as a New York City nurse who knows more than most of the doctors at her hospital, including how to end-run them to save patients' lives when the docs make stupid decisions. She's also an expert on prescription mood enhancers and pain killers, mostly because she uses just about every one, snagging them in nefarious ways that would amaze even the DEA.

Jackie's one mixed-up chick, hanging on as best she can. The United States' Tara is three mixed-up chicks, a little child and a dude, the possessor of split personalities that got the star of the show, Aussie Toni Colette, last year's best-actress Emmy. Awards-givers go gaga over split personalities, but in this case they got it right. Colette is marvelous, as are the folks who play Tara's family, struggling to maintain a paucity of normalcy as mom and wife continually rambles off the deep end.

Comcast and Showtime know how to make a buck. They figure the free samples will get people to pay for the premium service after the act-now offer runs out. In addition to the two bleakly funny gals, other fun characters will be waiting on signature Showtime series: Dexter (serial killer medical examiner),  Californication (sex-crazed author), Secret Diary of a Call Girl (no description necessary) and Weeds (suburban housewife drug dealer). Just go to the on-demand menu, and click down to "Top Picks" and then "Showtime Freeview."

Given the nature of Showtime programming, challenging and entertaining, but certainly over the lines of propriety, Comcast will also provide instructions on how to block the content from the eyes of curious kiddies.