So this year, new rules were put in place during the process of selecting Emmy finalists, in the hopes of making the nominations more open and less prone to the "nominee for life" status that seems to follow some actors and shows.
The result? There were some nominees that we would likely have not seen - Denis Leary for Rescue Me and Kyra Sedgewick for The Closer stand out - but for the most part, there was a sad familiarity to the acting nominees.
Part of this comes from shows taking their final bows - The West Wing, Malcolm in the Middle, Will & Grace, and Six Feet Under were all well-represented shows that have closed their doors. Stockard Channing managed a nod for her work on Out of Practice, though I think voters may have seen her name and just assumed she was up for The West Wing.
Combined with the return of The Sopranos and some new-found love for 24, the biggest losers this time around were Desperate Housewives and Lost, neither of which was tabbed for outstanding show and only generated one regular acting nomination for Alfre Woodard's directionless turn as Betty Applewhite on Housewives.
Not that either show lived up to its first-year performance/hype. But it's still pretty surprising.
Not that the news was all bad for ABC - Grey's Anatomy picked up 11 nominations. And while I keep saying I don't really care about the Emmys, I will be vexed beyond repair if Chandra Wilson doesn't win. Miranda Bailey completely kicks ass.
So who else would I give Emmys to, based on the nominees?
Supporting Actor, Drama - Gregory Itzin, 24. His Nixon for the 21st century was a fantastic melding of megalomania and insecurity.
Supporting Actor, Comedy - Will Arnett, Arrested Development. This isn't even close for me, though not watching Entourage means I can't assess Jeremy Piven's performance.
Supporting Actress, Drama - Chandra Wilson, fools!
Supporting Actress, Comedy - I can't think that Woodard's performance was the best on here - not her fault, really - so I'll go in the unexpected direction and go with Jaime Pressly on My Name is Earl.
Lead Actor, Drama - A win for Denis Leary and Rescue Me would be nice. Lead Actor, Comedy - Steve Carrell, The Office. To be fair, it's the only show for the nominees that I watch regularly.
Lead Actress, Drama - Allison Janney, The West Wing. For all my carping earlier, I still loves me some C. J. Cregg. Sorry.
Lead Actress, Comedy - Lisa Kudrow, The Comeback. Because, really, with the other choices, I'll take the HBO show I've never seen.
Outstanding Drama - House. It has no shot, between a possible send-off award for The West Wing, the buzz for Grey's Anatomy, and the return of The Sopranos, but for me House is the best of the five (though again, no HBO makes me less than an authority on The Sopranos). It's just a shame that Hugh Laurie didn't get a nod.
Outstanding Comedy - Arrested Development. Yup, I've drank the Kool-Aid. I can only hope that, if it does win, the orchestra plays "The Final Countdown" while the cast ambles to the stage.
Friday, July 07, 2006
Thursday, July 06, 2006
The Long Hot Summer
Even with the great increase in first-run summer TV programming, I find that I'm sticking to some familiar shows rather than trying the new (such as NBC's much advertised Windfall) or getting into returning shows like Rescue Me or The Closer. Rather, we've been focusing on similar troika as last summer:
* Last Comic Standing, which I care even less about now than I did during their ill-advised third season (which pitted finalists from the previous two seasons against each other). Out of the 12 finalists picked by a judging panel of Garry Marshall, Tim Meadows, and the rebarbative Kathy Griffin, I think I agreed with 3 of their selections.
It didn't help that they went from 40 semifinalists to 12 finalists in just two shows, showing 20 comics an episode. Even with the short interview segments, I can't say I built much interest in any of the finalists, even the ones I liked.
* The Gordon Ramsay double-dip of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America and Hell's Kitchen on Fox. I sincerely hope there are more than the four episodes shown in the first run of the former show, as it's much more entertaining than the "reality" of Hell's Kitchen. Though that's entertaining enough, even if this year's crop of wannabes isn't quite as interesting as last summer's group.
* So You Think You Can Dance?, which is collateral damage from the wife's viewing. I've taken a NASCAR approach and watched mainly for the dancers who screwed up, which will be sadly reduced now that they've set their final 20. More time on the computer for me.
I've also taken in some of The History Channel's The Revolution, which is OK (it'd be better if it incorporated more graphics, like Battlefield Britain, and less of the re-enactment with voice-over that's the mainstay of History Channel shows). Otherwise, it's been World Cup, the Tour de France, and random catching up with DVR stuff (where I learned that I had seen the pilot for How I Met Your Mother and that The Apprentice finales are getting worse, which I may discuss in more detail if I can get motivated to do so this long after the fact).
* Last Comic Standing, which I care even less about now than I did during their ill-advised third season (which pitted finalists from the previous two seasons against each other). Out of the 12 finalists picked by a judging panel of Garry Marshall, Tim Meadows, and the rebarbative Kathy Griffin, I think I agreed with 3 of their selections.
It didn't help that they went from 40 semifinalists to 12 finalists in just two shows, showing 20 comics an episode. Even with the short interview segments, I can't say I built much interest in any of the finalists, even the ones I liked.
* The Gordon Ramsay double-dip of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America and Hell's Kitchen on Fox. I sincerely hope there are more than the four episodes shown in the first run of the former show, as it's much more entertaining than the "reality" of Hell's Kitchen. Though that's entertaining enough, even if this year's crop of wannabes isn't quite as interesting as last summer's group.
* So You Think You Can Dance?, which is collateral damage from the wife's viewing. I've taken a NASCAR approach and watched mainly for the dancers who screwed up, which will be sadly reduced now that they've set their final 20. More time on the computer for me.
I've also taken in some of The History Channel's The Revolution, which is OK (it'd be better if it incorporated more graphics, like Battlefield Britain, and less of the re-enactment with voice-over that's the mainstay of History Channel shows). Otherwise, it's been World Cup, the Tour de France, and random catching up with DVR stuff (where I learned that I had seen the pilot for How I Met Your Mother and that The Apprentice finales are getting worse, which I may discuss in more detail if I can get motivated to do so this long after the fact).
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Rating Next Season
So I went to give an ordinal ranking for each of the networks for their upfronts, and came to discover that I couldn't name a number one.
There were a couple that stood out as not winning. NBC would have come in last given how they changed everything around scant weeks after their original presentation. Fox was also on my lower end, as I wasn't keen on their new shows and they apparently had the worst presentation ever (as reported by Aaron Barnhart over at TV Barn).
I had the CW in the middle, given that they're only premiering one new show, and it seems like a decent fit. Putting Everybody Hates Chris on at 7 and sticking a re-run of America's Next Top Model at 9 is a cop-out, though (thanks to King of LaPlaca James Dinan for pointing that out).
For all the mocking, I do have ABC as one of the better upfronts given that they seem to have the more interesting new shows. It's just that there are so many other, less interesting ones in their new lineup as well. CBS gets lumped in here, too, as they've put together a good new night on Sunday and have some interesting new show ideas, even if they aren't particularly original. I don't know if a mushroom cloud or James Woods will differentiate Jericho or Shark from Lost or any of the lawyer shows, but they've at least got a hook.
There were a couple that stood out as not winning. NBC would have come in last given how they changed everything around scant weeks after their original presentation. Fox was also on my lower end, as I wasn't keen on their new shows and they apparently had the worst presentation ever (as reported by Aaron Barnhart over at TV Barn).
I had the CW in the middle, given that they're only premiering one new show, and it seems like a decent fit. Putting Everybody Hates Chris on at 7 and sticking a re-run of America's Next Top Model at 9 is a cop-out, though (thanks to King of LaPlaca James Dinan for pointing that out).
For all the mocking, I do have ABC as one of the better upfronts given that they seem to have the more interesting new shows. It's just that there are so many other, less interesting ones in their new lineup as well. CBS gets lumped in here, too, as they've put together a good new night on Sunday and have some interesting new show ideas, even if they aren't particularly original. I don't know if a mushroom cloud or James Woods will differentiate Jericho or Shark from Lost or any of the lawyer shows, but they've at least got a hook.
Friday, May 26, 2006
NBC 2006/07 Schedule - It's New to You!
I was slowly working towards a recap of all the upfronts, but then NBC had to go and blow up its 2006/07 schedule. King of LaPlaca James Dinan gives a pretty good synopsis, but I wanted to take a night-by-night look at the revamp.
Sunday stays the same.
Monday sees Medium get pushed off to midseason so the Peacock can start things off with Deal or No Deal, Heroes, and Studio 60. And while Monday at 10 is an easier set of shows to go against than Thursday at 9 (What About Brian? and CSI:Miami versus CSI and Grey's Anatomy), Studio 60 I can't help but think that having a game show and another new drama as your lead-ins isn't going to bode well. Then again, with the other airing of Deal or No Deal moving into Studio 60's Thursday at 9 slot, this may be the only night it gets any viewers.
Tuesday opens as planned with Friday Night Lights but then double-dips L&O with Criminal Intent and SVU back-to-back. That's a lot of the criminal justice system in one night, and forces a choice between D'Onofrio/Noth and Laurie at 9 pm. That's not fair.
Wednesday swaps the sitcoms and The Biggest Loser, letting the weight loss show take the brunt against Lost and Criminal Minds. Kidnapped moves into the 10 pm slot, and might do OK there if anyone is around to watch.
Thursday only has that Studio 60 for Deal or No Deal. I just get the sense that this is going to be a painful night for NBC regardless.
Friday sees the early return of Crossing Jordan, followed by Las Vegas and L&O: Original Recipie. That might actually do OK versus the CBS shows, though it does feel like L&O is getting the brush-off.
Saturday, really, who cares. NBC isn't trying, and neither is anyone else.
There's a deck chairs on the Titanic feel to all this moving. Sure, Studio 60 gets a better time slot, but given that the other networks have stronger shows in the two hours prior to it, the move doesn't exactly guarantee success. The rest of the moves don't do much for me either way, although it does seem like NBC is cedeing the middle of the week a bit. I'm all for counter-programming, but you still need to offer something reasonably compelling. Just throwing something different up there isn't the best way to find success.
Sunday stays the same.
Monday sees Medium get pushed off to midseason so the Peacock can start things off with Deal or No Deal, Heroes, and Studio 60. And while Monday at 10 is an easier set of shows to go against than Thursday at 9 (What About Brian? and CSI:Miami versus CSI and Grey's Anatomy), Studio 60 I can't help but think that having a game show and another new drama as your lead-ins isn't going to bode well. Then again, with the other airing of Deal or No Deal moving into Studio 60's Thursday at 9 slot, this may be the only night it gets any viewers.
Tuesday opens as planned with Friday Night Lights but then double-dips L&O with Criminal Intent and SVU back-to-back. That's a lot of the criminal justice system in one night, and forces a choice between D'Onofrio/Noth and Laurie at 9 pm. That's not fair.
Wednesday swaps the sitcoms and The Biggest Loser, letting the weight loss show take the brunt against Lost and Criminal Minds. Kidnapped moves into the 10 pm slot, and might do OK there if anyone is around to watch.
Thursday only has that Studio 60 for Deal or No Deal. I just get the sense that this is going to be a painful night for NBC regardless.
Friday sees the early return of Crossing Jordan, followed by Las Vegas and L&O: Original Recipie. That might actually do OK versus the CBS shows, though it does feel like L&O is getting the brush-off.
Saturday, really, who cares. NBC isn't trying, and neither is anyone else.
There's a deck chairs on the Titanic feel to all this moving. Sure, Studio 60 gets a better time slot, but given that the other networks have stronger shows in the two hours prior to it, the move doesn't exactly guarantee success. The rest of the moves don't do much for me either way, although it does seem like NBC is cedeing the middle of the week a bit. I'm all for counter-programming, but you still need to offer something reasonably compelling. Just throwing something different up there isn't the best way to find success.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Upfronts: The CW
So what did the merger of The WB and UPN bring? Mostly what people had speculated on for the last couple of months, but some surprises as well. Rather than try to list shows that were canned, moved, and added, I'll do this recap night by night. It's easier that way.
SUNDAY presents a sitcom block that shows that UPN is gone but not forgotten. Everybody Hates Chris leads off the night, while All of Us, Girlfriends,and The Game rounds things out. The Game is a sitcom about the wives of NFL players, though it being a sitcom means it'll be no Footballer's Wives. Interestingly, it stars Tia Mowry, but not Tamara.
A rerun of America's Next Top Model caps the night.
UPN's "urban comedy" strategy lives on, and may even succeed now that some of the lesser lights have been dimmed.
MONDAY brings a pretty big surprise - the return of 7th Heaven, which aired its series finale this season. Having this established show around will certainly help. It's paired with Runaway, which stars Donnie Wahlberg and Leslie Hope as parents of a family that's on the run until Wahlberg can prove he didn't kill a co-worker. This comes to us from Darren Star, unusual given that his shows are usually sudsier.
TUESDAY gives us a pairing that was talked about quite a bit when the merger was announced - Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars, which avoided the axe again. I could think of worse things than Lauren Graham and Kristin Bell back-to-back. How this will actually work will be something to see.
WEDNESDAY could be the most vacuous night on TV next season, as the lead hour will be shared by America's Next Top Model and Beauty and the Geek. There's some crossover potential right there. The second hour is taken by One Tree Hill, about which I only know that it stars pretty young people.
THURSDAY brings back Smallville and Supernatural, which were paired on the WB this season with good results.
FRIDAY brings WWE Smackdown! over from UPN. SATURDAY has no network programming, which is probably just as well given the anemic attempts by the other networks to program it. Might as well throw the affiliates a bone.
The other surprise was news that Reba got a last-second reprieve, although it doesn't appear on the schedule. Not sure where it would go at this point, though Monday after 7th Heaven makes sense. They also announced a mid-season show called Hidden Palms about a kid whose family moves to Palm Springs after his father commits suicide. After living there a year, they begin to learn that there are secrets, you don't really know your neighbors, etc. I'm guessing Kevin Williamson is tweaking some Sex, Love & Secrets scripts for this one.
SUNDAY presents a sitcom block that shows that UPN is gone but not forgotten. Everybody Hates Chris leads off the night, while All of Us, Girlfriends,and The Game rounds things out. The Game is a sitcom about the wives of NFL players, though it being a sitcom means it'll be no Footballer's Wives. Interestingly, it stars Tia Mowry, but not Tamara.
A rerun of America's Next Top Model caps the night.
UPN's "urban comedy" strategy lives on, and may even succeed now that some of the lesser lights have been dimmed.
MONDAY brings a pretty big surprise - the return of 7th Heaven, which aired its series finale this season. Having this established show around will certainly help. It's paired with Runaway, which stars Donnie Wahlberg and Leslie Hope as parents of a family that's on the run until Wahlberg can prove he didn't kill a co-worker. This comes to us from Darren Star, unusual given that his shows are usually sudsier.
TUESDAY gives us a pairing that was talked about quite a bit when the merger was announced - Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars, which avoided the axe again. I could think of worse things than Lauren Graham and Kristin Bell back-to-back. How this will actually work will be something to see.
WEDNESDAY could be the most vacuous night on TV next season, as the lead hour will be shared by America's Next Top Model and Beauty and the Geek. There's some crossover potential right there. The second hour is taken by One Tree Hill, about which I only know that it stars pretty young people.
THURSDAY brings back Smallville and Supernatural, which were paired on the WB this season with good results.
FRIDAY brings WWE Smackdown! over from UPN. SATURDAY has no network programming, which is probably just as well given the anemic attempts by the other networks to program it. Might as well throw the affiliates a bone.
The other surprise was news that Reba got a last-second reprieve, although it doesn't appear on the schedule. Not sure where it would go at this point, though Monday after 7th Heaven makes sense. They also announced a mid-season show called Hidden Palms about a kid whose family moves to Palm Springs after his father commits suicide. After living there a year, they begin to learn that there are secrets, you don't really know your neighbors, etc. I'm guessing Kevin Williamson is tweaking some Sex, Love & Secrets scripts for this one.
Upfronts: FOX
While it's a little less confusing than last year, the FOX schedule for 2007-08 is again broken down into fall 2006 and spring 2007 components thanks to baseball and Rupert Murdoch's evilosity. It's not as bad as it sounds.
GONE - To the surprise of absolutely no one, Arrested Development was formally axed. It was also the official end of the road for Bernie Mac, Stacked, Free Ride, and Kitchen Confidential.
MOVED - American Dad and The War at Home swapped time slots. Woo hoo. Nanny 911 goes to Friday, keeping the time slot warm for Bones, which will move there from its Wednesday time slot in January 2007. A couple of the new shows will also move in January, but I'll get to those... now.
And if you see the schedule and can't find your favorite show, don't freak. American Idol, 24, King of the Hill, and The Loop are all back in January.
NEW - Your new offerings:
Vanished - the wife of a US Senator from Georgia goes missing, and in trying to find her a variety of conspiracies and mysteries are encountered, building a web of intrigue that will be familiar to Monday night viewers of Prison Break and/or 24, whose spot Vanished will take for the fall. Monday night, high-concept conspiracy drama and FOX all seem to go together, so I'm not going to bet against this one.
Standoff - A pair of FBI hostage negotiators become involved, and when it becomes common knowledge it changes the way they work and the cases they are assigned. Ron Livingston plays one of the negotiators. It'll be on Tuesdays at 8 in the fall and move to Monday at 8 for 2007. The description is pretty blah, and I don't know how well it will work on Monday unless it turns out one of them is also dating the President as a cover for overthrowing the government.
Speaking of blah descriptions, Justice follows a group of lawyers who handle controversial, high-profile cases. Stars Victor Garber, who will have to do something to keep this from getting lost in the sea of all the other lawyer-based dramas out there. It'll air Wednesdays, moving from 9 to 8 in 2007, though I wonder if Bones will find itself back there before all is said and done.
Thursday throws two new sitcoms at us. 'Til Death is about an idealistic newlywed couple that moves next door to longer-married - and thus cyncial - couple. Brad Garrett and Joely Fisher star (as the older couple, I assume) in this show that, to my eye, is Everybody Loves Raymond with a tweak of relationships.
The other show, Happy Hour, is about two guys - one blinded by love, the other damaged by it. The only thing that makes this stand out is that it's set in Chicago. I've not heard of any of the cast. Adios.
The only announced show to debut in January 2007 is The Wedding Album, which follows wedding photgrapher and his assistant as every week they shoot a new wedding and, I have to assume, encounter a variety of problems, issues, etc. Two surprises in the cast - Connie Stevens and America's Next Top Model cycle 3 winner Eva Pigford. So much for modeling.
This will air after Bones in the projected line-up, which is odd. They don't seem particularly compatible.
New at mid-season will be the sitcom Winner, where Lenny Clarke plays a 40something guy musing on his neurotic past circa-1994. I'll stake a claim here that this will replace Happy Hour. They could then move this and 'Til Death to Friday and lead in for The Wedding Album. Bones would go back to Wednesday, and the Thursday hole can be filled by On the Lot, an unscripted show from Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg which calls to mind Project Greenlight.
The other new unscripted show is Duets, a singing competition for pairs that will fill spots in the fall as baseball dictates.
Overall, I'm actually a little disappointed in this slate of new shows. Usually FOX has at least one show in the bag that makes you stop and think - either in wonder or incredulity. Vanished might have been that show - in 2003. None of the shows would look out of place on any other network's schedule, which is either a sign of FOX's maturation or a new-found timidity. This doesn't mean that these shows won't turn out well, just that they won't be all that unique.
GONE - To the surprise of absolutely no one, Arrested Development was formally axed. It was also the official end of the road for Bernie Mac, Stacked, Free Ride, and Kitchen Confidential.
MOVED - American Dad and The War at Home swapped time slots. Woo hoo. Nanny 911 goes to Friday, keeping the time slot warm for Bones, which will move there from its Wednesday time slot in January 2007. A couple of the new shows will also move in January, but I'll get to those... now.
And if you see the schedule and can't find your favorite show, don't freak. American Idol, 24, King of the Hill, and The Loop are all back in January.
NEW - Your new offerings:
Vanished - the wife of a US Senator from Georgia goes missing, and in trying to find her a variety of conspiracies and mysteries are encountered, building a web of intrigue that will be familiar to Monday night viewers of Prison Break and/or 24, whose spot Vanished will take for the fall. Monday night, high-concept conspiracy drama and FOX all seem to go together, so I'm not going to bet against this one.
Standoff - A pair of FBI hostage negotiators become involved, and when it becomes common knowledge it changes the way they work and the cases they are assigned. Ron Livingston plays one of the negotiators. It'll be on Tuesdays at 8 in the fall and move to Monday at 8 for 2007. The description is pretty blah, and I don't know how well it will work on Monday unless it turns out one of them is also dating the President as a cover for overthrowing the government.
Speaking of blah descriptions, Justice follows a group of lawyers who handle controversial, high-profile cases. Stars Victor Garber, who will have to do something to keep this from getting lost in the sea of all the other lawyer-based dramas out there. It'll air Wednesdays, moving from 9 to 8 in 2007, though I wonder if Bones will find itself back there before all is said and done.
Thursday throws two new sitcoms at us. 'Til Death is about an idealistic newlywed couple that moves next door to longer-married - and thus cyncial - couple. Brad Garrett and Joely Fisher star (as the older couple, I assume) in this show that, to my eye, is Everybody Loves Raymond with a tweak of relationships.
The other show, Happy Hour, is about two guys - one blinded by love, the other damaged by it. The only thing that makes this stand out is that it's set in Chicago. I've not heard of any of the cast. Adios.
The only announced show to debut in January 2007 is The Wedding Album, which follows wedding photgrapher and his assistant as every week they shoot a new wedding and, I have to assume, encounter a variety of problems, issues, etc. Two surprises in the cast - Connie Stevens and America's Next Top Model cycle 3 winner Eva Pigford. So much for modeling.
This will air after Bones in the projected line-up, which is odd. They don't seem particularly compatible.
New at mid-season will be the sitcom Winner, where Lenny Clarke plays a 40something guy musing on his neurotic past circa-1994. I'll stake a claim here that this will replace Happy Hour. They could then move this and 'Til Death to Friday and lead in for The Wedding Album. Bones would go back to Wednesday, and the Thursday hole can be filled by On the Lot, an unscripted show from Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg which calls to mind Project Greenlight.
The other new unscripted show is Duets, a singing competition for pairs that will fill spots in the fall as baseball dictates.
Overall, I'm actually a little disappointed in this slate of new shows. Usually FOX has at least one show in the bag that makes you stop and think - either in wonder or incredulity. Vanished might have been that show - in 2003. None of the shows would look out of place on any other network's schedule, which is either a sign of FOX's maturation or a new-found timidity. This doesn't mean that these shows won't turn out well, just that they won't be all that unique.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Upfronts: CBS
Not surprisingly for the most-watched network, there are very few changes in store for next season. It's good to be the king.
GONE - It was a tough year for sitcoms, as Yes, Dear, Still Standing, Courting Alex, and Out of Practice all got cut. Previous drama cancellations Threshold and Love Monkey were also officially put to rest.
MOVED - The most notably changed night is Sunday as CBS will put forward an 8-11 block of The Amazing Race, Cold Case, and Without a Trace. This has potential to take some steam out of ABC.
How I Met Your Mother will lead off Monday at 8, which seems a little early (though I assume it'll move to 9 for 2007-08).
While it's not a move, it was interesting that New Adventures of Old Christine and The Unit made the new schedule. Maybe mid-season really is TV's second-best season.
NEW - Three dramas and one sitcom will debut in the fall:
The Class is the sitcom, about a group of twentysomethings who haven't seen each other since third grade and are reuinited at a suprise party. Meh.
Smith, a drama about a gang of high-stakes thieves, will close Tuesday nights. Cast includes Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen. Not sure if this will succeed where Heist did not.
Jericho is the new show Wednesday at 10 pm. A mysterious mushroom appears in a Kansas town (Jericho), and the townspeople fear the apocalypse as they lose contact with the outside world. Fungus is the new aquatic alien, apparently. If you ever wondered what happened to Gerald McRaney and Skeet Ulrich, wonder no more! They'll be here - but for long?
Shark moves into Without a Trace's Thursday spot. It stars James Woods as a high-profile Hollywood defense attorney who switches sides to lead a group of inexperienced prosecutors. Jeri Ryan co-stars, so the Trek crowd may help with ratings. Though I don't think we'll see her in spandex. At least until sweeps.
I'm actually more interested in the two mid-season dramas - Three Pounds, about a brain surgeon who is losing function in his own brain, and Waterfront, starring Joe Pantoliano as the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island who is trying to clean up his crooked ways. You know Buddy Cianci is getting paid for this.
Overall, I'm guessing CBS stays on top. The only day I'd be worried about is Tuesday, but I think they'll be able to keep it together one way or another.
GONE - It was a tough year for sitcoms, as Yes, Dear, Still Standing, Courting Alex, and Out of Practice all got cut. Previous drama cancellations Threshold and Love Monkey were also officially put to rest.
MOVED - The most notably changed night is Sunday as CBS will put forward an 8-11 block of The Amazing Race, Cold Case, and Without a Trace. This has potential to take some steam out of ABC.
How I Met Your Mother will lead off Monday at 8, which seems a little early (though I assume it'll move to 9 for 2007-08).
While it's not a move, it was interesting that New Adventures of Old Christine and The Unit made the new schedule. Maybe mid-season really is TV's second-best season.
NEW - Three dramas and one sitcom will debut in the fall:
The Class is the sitcom, about a group of twentysomethings who haven't seen each other since third grade and are reuinited at a suprise party. Meh.
Smith, a drama about a gang of high-stakes thieves, will close Tuesday nights. Cast includes Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen. Not sure if this will succeed where Heist did not.
Jericho is the new show Wednesday at 10 pm. A mysterious mushroom appears in a Kansas town (Jericho), and the townspeople fear the apocalypse as they lose contact with the outside world. Fungus is the new aquatic alien, apparently. If you ever wondered what happened to Gerald McRaney and Skeet Ulrich, wonder no more! They'll be here - but for long?
Shark moves into Without a Trace's Thursday spot. It stars James Woods as a high-profile Hollywood defense attorney who switches sides to lead a group of inexperienced prosecutors. Jeri Ryan co-stars, so the Trek crowd may help with ratings. Though I don't think we'll see her in spandex. At least until sweeps.
I'm actually more interested in the two mid-season dramas - Three Pounds, about a brain surgeon who is losing function in his own brain, and Waterfront, starring Joe Pantoliano as the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island who is trying to clean up his crooked ways. You know Buddy Cianci is getting paid for this.
Overall, I'm guessing CBS stays on top. The only day I'd be worried about is Tuesday, but I think they'll be able to keep it together one way or another.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Upfronts: ABC
It's worse than I thought: ABC will spring 15 new shows on us next season, with some sort of change every night of the week.
GONE - It might be easier to list the shows that didn't get canned. Notables here include Monday Night Football, Commander in Chief, Less than Perfect, Invasion, and Primetime Live (somewhat surprisingly, though I assume it could return to fill holes).
MOVED - Grey's Anatomy to Thursday at 9 is the biggie. I can't even begin to predict how this will play out, between CSI, NBC's Studio 60 and the CW's Supernatural, which is expected to land here as well. I tend to think Grey's Anatomy will do OK on its own - it's turned out to be better than the increasingly cartoonish Desperate Housewives - but it's a crowded night.
What About Brian survived the cut (shades of Jake in Progress?) and will team up with Supernanny, Wife Swap, and for reasons unknown to science, The Bachelor to make up for the loss of testosterone on Monday.
Dancing With the Stars will lead off Tuesday and Wednesday nights, while George Lopez and According to Jim will move together to lead off Wednesdays after the dancing ends. That's a hell of a way to repay J. J. Abrams.
NEW - Speaking of Abrams, he'll have a new show on Thursday at 10. Six Degrees follows six New Yorkers who are brought together again after an initial meeting. The reunion is under strange circumstances (of course), and they become friends. Cast includes Hope Davis, Bridget Moynihan, and Campbell Scott. This whill hopefully move a little faster than Lost while retaining its mystery.
Speaking of Lost, it will lead out to The Nine, a show about people who experience a "twist of faith" related to being held hostage during a failed bank robbery. Lots of familiar faces here - Chi McBride, Timothy Daly, and Scott Wolf.
OK, I'll never get through all of these at this rate. The shorter version:
Brothers & Sisters should not be confused with Sons & Daughters, though I can't keep them straight. Calista Flockhart headlines this drama about a family dealing with the loss of its matriarch. It gets to follow Desperate Housewives, which suggests it'll be around for at least a whole season.
Let's Rob... is a sitcom based around a guy (Donal Logue) who plans a heist to get money so he can open a bar. Mick Jagger is guesting in the pilot, which is about the best thing I can say about it at this point. It runs Tuesday at 9, and is followed by Help Me Help You, marking Ted Danson's re-return to sitcoms. It sounds like Dear John, but from the shrink's point of view.
Thursday 8-9 is the home of Big Day - a show about planning a wedding starring Wendie Malick and Marla Sokoloff. It is followed by Notes from the Underbelly, wherein a woman who doesn't want kids becomes pregnant - and she and her husband decided to keep that fact hidden from their friends. Expect the secret to get out one way or another around February sweeps - assuming the show makes it that long (ditto for its lineup-mate).
Betty the Ugly kicks off Friday - it's a show about a woman hired as an assistant to a guy based on the idea that she's unattractive enough that he won't hit on her. I'm sure that sounded better when it was pitched. It is followed at 9 by Men in Trees, which stars Anne Heche as a relationship coach who decides to stay in Alaska when she's snowed in after finding out her fiance cheated on her. So I take it I'm not supposed to thank God it's Friday anymore?
There's a whole slew of midseason shows, too, most of which haven't been positioned yet (though you can guess where they might go - hello Friday!). They include:
Daybreak, starring Taye Diggs as a policeman who has to prove that he did not shoot the state's attorney.
Traveler, about two guys who pull off some sort of rollerblading stunt in a NYC museum and are arrested as terrorists when the museum is bombed shortly thereafter. If that makes sense to you, you can be an ABC programming exec. Stephen Culp makes us all wish he was still playing Rex van de Camp by appearing in this.
In Case of Emergency, where friends from high school are reuinited - in the ER. Lots of recognizable names here - Lori Loughlin, David Arquette, Kelly Hu, Jonathon Silverman. That may cut both ways.
There are also three unscripted replacements, of which I'll specifically mention Set For the Rest of Your Life, where a couple plays to win regular checks for life... but at what amount? This will replace Dancing With the Stars on Tuesdays when that show ends, thus effectively stranding Boston Legal.
Do you get the feeling ABC will be trotting out 15 new shows for 2007-08? OK, it's not all that bad - Six Degrees, The Nine, and Brothers & Sisters all have a chance, thanks to some good time-slotting. The Tuesday night comedies may prove durable, as both Logue and Danson kept Grounded for Life and Becker going longer than anyone expected.
But there's still a lot of suck, much of it at the start of hours. That doesn't help the later shows at all. Friday is pretty much a lost cause, and Monday is uninspiring.
All in all, a more interesting schedule than what NBC presented yesterday, but with more risk.
GONE - It might be easier to list the shows that didn't get canned. Notables here include Monday Night Football, Commander in Chief, Less than Perfect, Invasion, and Primetime Live (somewhat surprisingly, though I assume it could return to fill holes).
MOVED - Grey's Anatomy to Thursday at 9 is the biggie. I can't even begin to predict how this will play out, between CSI, NBC's Studio 60 and the CW's Supernatural, which is expected to land here as well. I tend to think Grey's Anatomy will do OK on its own - it's turned out to be better than the increasingly cartoonish Desperate Housewives - but it's a crowded night.
What About Brian survived the cut (shades of Jake in Progress?) and will team up with Supernanny, Wife Swap, and for reasons unknown to science, The Bachelor to make up for the loss of testosterone on Monday.
Dancing With the Stars will lead off Tuesday and Wednesday nights, while George Lopez and According to Jim will move together to lead off Wednesdays after the dancing ends. That's a hell of a way to repay J. J. Abrams.
NEW - Speaking of Abrams, he'll have a new show on Thursday at 10. Six Degrees follows six New Yorkers who are brought together again after an initial meeting. The reunion is under strange circumstances (of course), and they become friends. Cast includes Hope Davis, Bridget Moynihan, and Campbell Scott. This whill hopefully move a little faster than Lost while retaining its mystery.
Speaking of Lost, it will lead out to The Nine, a show about people who experience a "twist of faith" related to being held hostage during a failed bank robbery. Lots of familiar faces here - Chi McBride, Timothy Daly, and Scott Wolf.
OK, I'll never get through all of these at this rate. The shorter version:
Brothers & Sisters should not be confused with Sons & Daughters, though I can't keep them straight. Calista Flockhart headlines this drama about a family dealing with the loss of its matriarch. It gets to follow Desperate Housewives, which suggests it'll be around for at least a whole season.
Let's Rob... is a sitcom based around a guy (Donal Logue) who plans a heist to get money so he can open a bar. Mick Jagger is guesting in the pilot, which is about the best thing I can say about it at this point. It runs Tuesday at 9, and is followed by Help Me Help You, marking Ted Danson's re-return to sitcoms. It sounds like Dear John, but from the shrink's point of view.
Thursday 8-9 is the home of Big Day - a show about planning a wedding starring Wendie Malick and Marla Sokoloff. It is followed by Notes from the Underbelly, wherein a woman who doesn't want kids becomes pregnant - and she and her husband decided to keep that fact hidden from their friends. Expect the secret to get out one way or another around February sweeps - assuming the show makes it that long (ditto for its lineup-mate).
Betty the Ugly kicks off Friday - it's a show about a woman hired as an assistant to a guy based on the idea that she's unattractive enough that he won't hit on her. I'm sure that sounded better when it was pitched. It is followed at 9 by Men in Trees, which stars Anne Heche as a relationship coach who decides to stay in Alaska when she's snowed in after finding out her fiance cheated on her. So I take it I'm not supposed to thank God it's Friday anymore?
There's a whole slew of midseason shows, too, most of which haven't been positioned yet (though you can guess where they might go - hello Friday!). They include:
Daybreak, starring Taye Diggs as a policeman who has to prove that he did not shoot the state's attorney.
Traveler, about two guys who pull off some sort of rollerblading stunt in a NYC museum and are arrested as terrorists when the museum is bombed shortly thereafter. If that makes sense to you, you can be an ABC programming exec. Stephen Culp makes us all wish he was still playing Rex van de Camp by appearing in this.
In Case of Emergency, where friends from high school are reuinited - in the ER. Lots of recognizable names here - Lori Loughlin, David Arquette, Kelly Hu, Jonathon Silverman. That may cut both ways.
There are also three unscripted replacements, of which I'll specifically mention Set For the Rest of Your Life, where a couple plays to win regular checks for life... but at what amount? This will replace Dancing With the Stars on Tuesdays when that show ends, thus effectively stranding Boston Legal.
Do you get the feeling ABC will be trotting out 15 new shows for 2007-08? OK, it's not all that bad - Six Degrees, The Nine, and Brothers & Sisters all have a chance, thanks to some good time-slotting. The Tuesday night comedies may prove durable, as both Logue and Danson kept Grounded for Life and Becker going longer than anyone expected.
But there's still a lot of suck, much of it at the start of hours. That doesn't help the later shows at all. Friday is pretty much a lost cause, and Monday is uninspiring.
All in all, a more interesting schedule than what NBC presented yesterday, but with more risk.
Upfronts: ABC (Prologue)
Apparently, the people at ABC hate us. They'll be premiering 12 new shows in the fall (and have at least three more on tap for later in the year), and none of them will be replacing According to Jim. The horror.
I've only seen the press release on this, so I'll have a fuller post later. The big news is that Grey's Anatomy is moving to Thursday at 9, putting a shot across the bow of CBS.
A fuller report is coming.
I've only seen the press release on this, so I'll have a fuller post later. The big news is that Grey's Anatomy is moving to Thursday at 9, putting a shot across the bow of CBS.
A fuller report is coming.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Upfronts - NBC
It's that time of year again - the networks present their 2006/07 lineups in the hopes of generating good buzz and ad sales. NBC led off with a presentation this morning.
GONE - You knew that The West Wing and Will & Grace were done, but joining them will be several other shows, with no big surprises: Joey, Inconceivable, Surface, Conviction, Teachers, Heist, The Book of Daniel, Most Outrageous Moments, E-Ring, and Three Wishes.
MOVING - My Name is Earl and The Office will move up to the lead hour on Thursday while Law & Order: Criminal Intent moves to Friday at 10 pm. Scrubs, Crossing Jordan, and The Apprentice will all return at mid-season (Trump will highlight NBC's Sunday coverage after NFL coverage ends, meaning we only get one dose a year, thankfully).
NEW - Seven new shows on tap. They are:
Heroes - ordinary people learn that they've developed superpowers. It stars Adrian Pasdar, Milo Ventimiglia, and a host of people I've never heard of. It airs Monday at 9, and might work well with Medium. Deal or No Deal starts the night (and will only be on twice a week, nice restraint NBC).
Friday Night Lights - based on the book and/or movie, it's about a central Texas town and the high school football team it loves a little too much. Kyle Chandler plays the head coach. Let's hope this stays closer to the source material and doesn't veer into Varsity Blues territory.
That will air Tuesday at 8, and will be followed by Kidnapped, which is not based on the Stevenson novel. Rather, it follows a kidnapping case from start to finish. Cast includes Dana Delany, Timothy Hutton, Jeremy Sisto, Delroy Lindo, and Mykelti Williamson. Think Murder One meets Without a Trace.
Wednesday gives us a new sitcom block with 20 Good Years and 30 Rock. NBC goes back to the well with John Lithgow in 20 Good Years as he and Jeffrey Tambor star as two guys who figure they only have "20 good years" left and plan to live life accordingly. I assume part of that plan is egregious over-acting.
30 Rock stars Tina Fey as the head writer of a sketch comedy show who has to deal with a tempermental star and difficult executive producer. Similarities to SNL or Kilborn-era Daily Show are likely intentional.
Personally, I think this show might go better with The Office and 20 Good Years could pair up with My Name is Earl for some life-changing fun. We'll see.
The SNL appropriation continues on Thursday with Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, a drama about life behind the scenes of a sketch comedy show. The cast is chock full of familiar faces: Matthew Perry, D. L. Huglhey, Amanda Peet, Steven Weber, and Brad Whitford among them. The real question: with a sitcom and a drama about sketch comedy on tap, will people be burned out before getting to watch NBC's actual sketch comedy show?
ER continues in its Thursday at 10 slot (it was rumored to be moving), but will be replaced at mid-season by The Black Donnellys, a drama about four brothers and their deepening involvement with organized crime. Paul Haggis is involved, so hopefully this will be more like EZ Streets and less like the crap he did earlier in his career. ER will return late in the season.
The two other new shows will show up on Sunday once football is over. Preceding Trump will be America's Got Talent, a variety show competition set in Las Vegas that will find the country's best singer or dancer or juggler or something. I smell a Shields and Yarnell comeback!
Post-Trump we have Raines, which is sadly not about Audrey or her dead husband from 24. Instead, Jeff Goldblum goes all Ghost Whisperer on us and partners up with a murder victim to find the killer. Luis Guzman is involved, and while he's very funny, the TV shows he appears on tend to get canned. I'm going to bet on that here, too.
Oh, almost forgot The Singles Table, which will show up at midseason to help fill holes. It's about a bunch of singles who are put at the same table at a wedding. They become friends, yadda yadda yadda, and then the show gets cancelled.
From my limited vantage point, the only shows that really pique my interest are the SNL-derived ones. And even then, I don't think I'd be interested in more than one of them.
GONE - You knew that The West Wing and Will & Grace were done, but joining them will be several other shows, with no big surprises: Joey, Inconceivable, Surface, Conviction, Teachers, Heist, The Book of Daniel, Most Outrageous Moments, E-Ring, and Three Wishes.
MOVING - My Name is Earl and The Office will move up to the lead hour on Thursday while Law & Order: Criminal Intent moves to Friday at 10 pm. Scrubs, Crossing Jordan, and The Apprentice will all return at mid-season (Trump will highlight NBC's Sunday coverage after NFL coverage ends, meaning we only get one dose a year, thankfully).
NEW - Seven new shows on tap. They are:
Heroes - ordinary people learn that they've developed superpowers. It stars Adrian Pasdar, Milo Ventimiglia, and a host of people I've never heard of. It airs Monday at 9, and might work well with Medium. Deal or No Deal starts the night (and will only be on twice a week, nice restraint NBC).
Friday Night Lights - based on the book and/or movie, it's about a central Texas town and the high school football team it loves a little too much. Kyle Chandler plays the head coach. Let's hope this stays closer to the source material and doesn't veer into Varsity Blues territory.
That will air Tuesday at 8, and will be followed by Kidnapped, which is not based on the Stevenson novel. Rather, it follows a kidnapping case from start to finish. Cast includes Dana Delany, Timothy Hutton, Jeremy Sisto, Delroy Lindo, and Mykelti Williamson. Think Murder One meets Without a Trace.
Wednesday gives us a new sitcom block with 20 Good Years and 30 Rock. NBC goes back to the well with John Lithgow in 20 Good Years as he and Jeffrey Tambor star as two guys who figure they only have "20 good years" left and plan to live life accordingly. I assume part of that plan is egregious over-acting.
30 Rock stars Tina Fey as the head writer of a sketch comedy show who has to deal with a tempermental star and difficult executive producer. Similarities to SNL or Kilborn-era Daily Show are likely intentional.
Personally, I think this show might go better with The Office and 20 Good Years could pair up with My Name is Earl for some life-changing fun. We'll see.
The SNL appropriation continues on Thursday with Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, a drama about life behind the scenes of a sketch comedy show. The cast is chock full of familiar faces: Matthew Perry, D. L. Huglhey, Amanda Peet, Steven Weber, and Brad Whitford among them. The real question: with a sitcom and a drama about sketch comedy on tap, will people be burned out before getting to watch NBC's actual sketch comedy show?
ER continues in its Thursday at 10 slot (it was rumored to be moving), but will be replaced at mid-season by The Black Donnellys, a drama about four brothers and their deepening involvement with organized crime. Paul Haggis is involved, so hopefully this will be more like EZ Streets and less like the crap he did earlier in his career. ER will return late in the season.
The two other new shows will show up on Sunday once football is over. Preceding Trump will be America's Got Talent, a variety show competition set in Las Vegas that will find the country's best singer or dancer or juggler or something. I smell a Shields and Yarnell comeback!
Post-Trump we have Raines, which is sadly not about Audrey or her dead husband from 24. Instead, Jeff Goldblum goes all Ghost Whisperer on us and partners up with a murder victim to find the killer. Luis Guzman is involved, and while he's very funny, the TV shows he appears on tend to get canned. I'm going to bet on that here, too.
Oh, almost forgot The Singles Table, which will show up at midseason to help fill holes. It's about a bunch of singles who are put at the same table at a wedding. They become friends, yadda yadda yadda, and then the show gets cancelled.
From my limited vantage point, the only shows that really pique my interest are the SNL-derived ones. And even then, I don't think I'd be interested in more than one of them.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Not Surprising, Surprising, Most Surprising
Not Surprising - Sara getting the boot on America's Next Top Model. We knew she was toast when Nigel actually said Jade looked like a model. Pair that with Sara's continued awkwardness and it wasn't that much of a stretch.
(As an aside, Tyra made more comments about Danielle's accent, and next week the girls film a Cover Girl spot. Perfect set-up to engineer a Joanie-Jade final. Bastards. I'm still not sure how they expect Danielle to change how she's talked her whole life in the space of a few weeks. Clearly, there aren't any linguists or speech therapists on the judging panel.)
Surprising - Chris Daughtry getting the boot on American Idol. Considering I had him going out sixth this shouldn't have been that surprising, but after Katherine McPhee forgot some lyrics the night before, I think everyone (including her) thought she was going home.
This is probably a winning by losing scenario, as Chris is probably more suited to fronting a band than going solo. Especially with the twaddle the winner usually has to record.
The McPhee-Hicks final is still possible, though if it comes to pass I think it'll be a coronotation for the twitchiest Idol yet.
Most Surprising - the DVR didn't tape the last minute or so of Lost (thanks, Comcast!), so I didn't get to see if Libby ratted out Michael or not. I've been brought up to speed, though I'm sure it'll get shown in the previouslies next week.
(As an aside, Tyra made more comments about Danielle's accent, and next week the girls film a Cover Girl spot. Perfect set-up to engineer a Joanie-Jade final. Bastards. I'm still not sure how they expect Danielle to change how she's talked her whole life in the space of a few weeks. Clearly, there aren't any linguists or speech therapists on the judging panel.)
Surprising - Chris Daughtry getting the boot on American Idol. Considering I had him going out sixth this shouldn't have been that surprising, but after Katherine McPhee forgot some lyrics the night before, I think everyone (including her) thought she was going home.
This is probably a winning by losing scenario, as Chris is probably more suited to fronting a band than going solo. Especially with the twaddle the winner usually has to record.
The McPhee-Hicks final is still possible, though if it comes to pass I think it'll be a coronotation for the twitchiest Idol yet.
Most Surprising - the DVR didn't tape the last minute or so of Lost (thanks, Comcast!), so I didn't get to see if Libby ratted out Michael or not. I've been brought up to speed, though I'm sure it'll get shown in the previouslies next week.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Meanwhile, on The Apprentice
I've been pretty happy with this season of The Donald's "interview" for a new apprentice. I'm not thrilled with the number of marketing-related tasks (perfect for product placement, but boring), but there does seem to be a return to more moments in the suite, which is good to see the contestants outside of tasks and boardroom. The rewards are still pretty useless to see; I don't think I needed to watch a song get written by committee for Burt Bacharach, who is probably still trying to sort out how he got roped into doing it.
The firings have been pretty satisfying, especially the one for dictator-in-training Andrea. I suppose there's the positive that Andrea knew she was a bossy boots, but on the other hand her constant passive-agressive approach to things and her "surprise" whenever someone said something negative about her were pathetic. I'm sure if she read this she'd comfort herself by noting that her net worth is higher than mine. She seemed to find comfort in that at times.
Next week we have a reshuffling that gets the teams back to men versus women. Based on past experience, the task will be something "manly" - selling power tools or beer or something - that they'll screw up in amazing fashion.
I should also take this opportunity to note that the use of Ivanka and Donald Jr. as assistants rather than George, Bill, or Carolyn has actually gone pretty well. We've only seen Jr. once, and Ivanka two or three times, but they fit in pretty well. Neither are as acerbic or witty as George and Carolyn, but they can hold their own. It was also kind of cute to see them interact with their dad after Andrea's firing. Just another loving family cutting loose dead weight.
The firings have been pretty satisfying, especially the one for dictator-in-training Andrea. I suppose there's the positive that Andrea knew she was a bossy boots, but on the other hand her constant passive-agressive approach to things and her "surprise" whenever someone said something negative about her were pathetic. I'm sure if she read this she'd comfort herself by noting that her net worth is higher than mine. She seemed to find comfort in that at times.
Next week we have a reshuffling that gets the teams back to men versus women. Based on past experience, the task will be something "manly" - selling power tools or beer or something - that they'll screw up in amazing fashion.
I should also take this opportunity to note that the use of Ivanka and Donald Jr. as assistants rather than George, Bill, or Carolyn has actually gone pretty well. We've only seen Jr. once, and Ivanka two or three times, but they fit in pretty well. Neither are as acerbic or witty as George and Carolyn, but they can hold their own. It was also kind of cute to see them interact with their dad after Andrea's firing. Just another loving family cutting loose dead weight.
Mutilation! Part 2
Finally saw the episode of America's Next Top Model where Danielle goes back to the dentist to get her gap closed. It didn't get closed all the way, so it kind of worked out for Danielle. She still has a bit of a gap, but now the judges can't harp on the gap as why she can't be a top model. Instead, they're harping on the way she talks. Which is somewhat understandable, but also unfair. I don't think you can expect someone to change the way they talk at the drop of a hat.
Also unfair is that they've now sent Nnenna and Furonda home while keeping Jade around. I assume that's for TV purposes, but she's pretty much worn out her welcome. There are only so many weeks in a row you can see someone that conceited proclaim their humility before you hope they get hit by a bus. Or, as they're in Thailand now, stepped on by an elephant (sadly, the photo shoot involving elephants did not result in this).
Somewhat related, is it me or do all of the "My Life as a Cover Girl" spots involve Nicole's time at Fashion Week? Wasn't that a while ago? I suppose it's better than when Naima went to that Walgreens.
Also unfair is that they've now sent Nnenna and Furonda home while keeping Jade around. I assume that's for TV purposes, but she's pretty much worn out her welcome. There are only so many weeks in a row you can see someone that conceited proclaim their humility before you hope they get hit by a bus. Or, as they're in Thailand now, stepped on by an elephant (sadly, the photo shoot involving elephants did not result in this).
Somewhat related, is it me or do all of the "My Life as a Cover Girl" spots involve Nicole's time at Fashion Week? Wasn't that a while ago? I suppose it's better than when Naima went to that Walgreens.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
OK, James Heller driving into the Pacific, I can see that. Sort of. But last night's Lost ending? That came from way out of left field. It was the sort of ending that made the weeks of slowness almost worth it. Almost.
That and they had the Hanso Foundation commerical, complete with phone number. I just tried calling it (1-877-HANSORG, if I remember right), and it was busy. Or is that part of the game?
That and they had the Hanso Foundation commerical, complete with phone number. I just tried calling it (1-877-HANSORG, if I remember right), and it was busy. Or is that part of the game?
This is Why I Don't Gamble (Much)
Two weeks in a row, my American Idol prognostication comes a cropper. Not that I'm upset; I'd much rather have Elliot and Chris in than Paris or Pickler.
I still think it's going to be a McPhee-Hicks final, but I'd not put any money on it.
I still think it's going to be a McPhee-Hicks final, but I'd not put any money on it.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
From the hatch to the cellblock
Michelle Rodriquez has apparently opted for five days of jail time rather than 240 hours of community service as part of her DUI sentence (she pled guilty). It's an interesting choice, which I figure cuts less into her free time outside of shooting Lost. I suppose she can also term it research and start looking for roles where she can play a female convict.
Given that she'd previously pleaded no contest to a 2004 DUI charge in California, I hope she's not researching the role of a reckless drunk. I also hope for her sake that the Hawaii case doesn't constitute a parole violation in California. Otherwise, Ana Lucia's going to have to get kidnapped by the Others for a while.
For what it's worth, fellow Lost actor Cynthia Watros also pled guilty to her DUI (both were pulled over within 15 minutes of each other), and got a prize package of a fine, alcohol assessment, counseling, and a 90 day licence suspension.
Remember: it's OK to hang loose, but perhaps not so literally.
Given that she'd previously pleaded no contest to a 2004 DUI charge in California, I hope she's not researching the role of a reckless drunk. I also hope for her sake that the Hawaii case doesn't constitute a parole violation in California. Otherwise, Ana Lucia's going to have to get kidnapped by the Others for a while.
For what it's worth, fellow Lost actor Cynthia Watros also pled guilty to her DUI (both were pulled over within 15 minutes of each other), and got a prize package of a fine, alcohol assessment, counseling, and a 90 day licence suspension.
Remember: it's OK to hang loose, but perhaps not so literally.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Halfway There
We're now down to six finalists on American Idol, going into tonight's show featuring love songs as taught by Andrea Bocelli.
There's a sentence I never expected to type.
Anyway, as we get closer to ending our annual death march, here's my pick for how the final six will go down:
6. Chris Daughtry - he's probably the contestant with the most potential to jump right into the industry, but he's not really an Idol-type performer, last week's rendition of "What a Wonderful World" notwithstanding. He's more of a Rock Star-type performer, and the show's non-rock orientation is going to be his undoing, as he has not taken the Bo Bice route of singing and appearing more like a typical show contestant.
Daughtry's been in the bottom three a few times, and I don't think he'll hang on.
5. Elliot Yamin - unlike some contestants, his difficult background (medical) hasn't been overly played-up (either by choice or by Fox wanting to build sympathy for others). He sings pretty well, but is lost a little bit in all the extra crap that surrounds this "singing contest." He has kind of a soul edge to his vocals, which I think works well for him, but only to a point.
4. Paris Bennett - Paris Bennett, meet Tamyra Gray and Latoya London. This is about the point in the competition where African-American women with powerful voices get shown the door (Fantasia notwithstanding), regardless of their actual talent. She might get past this, given how she was pretty much anointed as a finalist at her audition, but I'm going to go with history here.
3. Kellie Pickler - proof that pathos, peroxide, and pulchritude can make up where the singing drops off. There's no reason why she should still be in this competition, other than voters who sympathize with her heavily-hyped backstory and those who think she's purty. There's always one contestant who goes much farther than talent suggests, and this time around it's Pickler.
2. Katherine McPhee - she's attractive and can sing, which probably explains some of Simon Cowell's very positive comments the last few weeks. I think he'd much rather have to promote Katherine than...
1. Taylor Hicks - he seems like he's going to win. He's not been in the bottom grouping, and he tends to lead the DialIdol rankings (a web-based autodialer that measures the busy signals for each contestant, assuming that busy=lots of votes). I'd originally wanted him to win, thinking that there was no way he'd win. Now I'm almost hoping he doesn't win, as I don't know if I can stand future performances full of his spasmodic jerking. Be careful what you wish for, I suppose.
There's a sentence I never expected to type.
Anyway, as we get closer to ending our annual death march, here's my pick for how the final six will go down:
6. Chris Daughtry - he's probably the contestant with the most potential to jump right into the industry, but he's not really an Idol-type performer, last week's rendition of "What a Wonderful World" notwithstanding. He's more of a Rock Star-type performer, and the show's non-rock orientation is going to be his undoing, as he has not taken the Bo Bice route of singing and appearing more like a typical show contestant.
Daughtry's been in the bottom three a few times, and I don't think he'll hang on.
5. Elliot Yamin - unlike some contestants, his difficult background (medical) hasn't been overly played-up (either by choice or by Fox wanting to build sympathy for others). He sings pretty well, but is lost a little bit in all the extra crap that surrounds this "singing contest." He has kind of a soul edge to his vocals, which I think works well for him, but only to a point.
4. Paris Bennett - Paris Bennett, meet Tamyra Gray and Latoya London. This is about the point in the competition where African-American women with powerful voices get shown the door (Fantasia notwithstanding), regardless of their actual talent. She might get past this, given how she was pretty much anointed as a finalist at her audition, but I'm going to go with history here.
3. Kellie Pickler - proof that pathos, peroxide, and pulchritude can make up where the singing drops off. There's no reason why she should still be in this competition, other than voters who sympathize with her heavily-hyped backstory and those who think she's purty. There's always one contestant who goes much farther than talent suggests, and this time around it's Pickler.
2. Katherine McPhee - she's attractive and can sing, which probably explains some of Simon Cowell's very positive comments the last few weeks. I think he'd much rather have to promote Katherine than...
1. Taylor Hicks - he seems like he's going to win. He's not been in the bottom grouping, and he tends to lead the DialIdol rankings (a web-based autodialer that measures the busy signals for each contestant, assuming that busy=lots of votes). I'd originally wanted him to win, thinking that there was no way he'd win. Now I'm almost hoping he doesn't win, as I don't know if I can stand future performances full of his spasmodic jerking. Be careful what you wish for, I suppose.
Mutilation!
Last week's episode of America's Next Top Model featured a trip to the dentist to get the contestants some teeth whitening. It is likely not a coincidence that this trip took place in the same season where two of the contestants have noticable dental appearances: one "snaggletooth" and one Lettermanesque gap. Both women had the opportunity to "correct" their problem.
Joanie, the contestant with the snaggletooth, took the offer. Ten hours, four extractions, and a bunch of filing later, she was fitted with veneers that give her a "perfect" smile. Danielle, who has the gap, passed on making a change.
Not surprisingly, Tyra and co. approved Joanie's change, and pretty much told Danielle she'd not win if she didn't get her gap fixed. Apparently, there's never been a top model with gapped teeth (I suppose this woman doesn't count).
Also not surprisingly, Danielle makes a return trip to the dentist in this week's episode.
I'm not sure what I dislike more about this turn of events - the Extreme Makeover vibe, or the push to alter physical appearance. The show usually does a decent job on topics like plastic surgery and the like, and I suppose cosmetic dentistry isn't on the same level as a boob job, but I'm still not comfortable.
Joanie, the contestant with the snaggletooth, took the offer. Ten hours, four extractions, and a bunch of filing later, she was fitted with veneers that give her a "perfect" smile. Danielle, who has the gap, passed on making a change.
Not surprisingly, Tyra and co. approved Joanie's change, and pretty much told Danielle she'd not win if she didn't get her gap fixed. Apparently, there's never been a top model with gapped teeth (I suppose this woman doesn't count).
Also not surprisingly, Danielle makes a return trip to the dentist in this week's episode.
I'm not sure what I dislike more about this turn of events - the Extreme Makeover vibe, or the push to alter physical appearance. The show usually does a decent job on topics like plastic surgery and the like, and I suppose cosmetic dentistry isn't on the same level as a boob job, but I'm still not comfortable.
Monday, April 24, 2006
Lost Weekend
After spending a fair amount of time this weekend catching up on stuff on the DVR, I have to say I was mostly underwhelmed. The lineup:
* The National Geographic Channel special on the Gospel of Judas, the restoration of which was partially funded by the NGS. I can only hope that the article in the latest issue of the magazine is less repetitive and dull than the special, which seemed like 40 minutes of material stuffed into 120 minutes of show. It was very disappointing.
* "Requiem," the episode of The West Wing that seemed like it was going to focus on the passing of Leo McGarry but spent a lot of time on transition issues. The best parts of the episode focused on Leo and on interplay between original cast members, which should have gotten the entire hour. The subplot on the Speaker of the House election could have waited a week.
* Sticking with the executive branch, the return of Commander in Chief was as disappointing as Aaron Barnhart's review indicated. I imagine it's a short list of shows that have a lead win a Golden Globe and still get cancelled in its first year, but there's a real chance that list will grow. Which is too bad; they're wasting a good cast.
* The first two episodes of Thief, a new FX drama starring Andre Braugher. It may still grow on me, but I had a lingering feeling that I was missing something as I watched.
* Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy both had clip shows last night. Why are they still doing this? I can perhaps forgive the latter show - they need to educate folks who've started watching since the Super Bowl - but Housewives? That's just padding.
On the plus side, we did catch up with 24, which is still implausibly delicious, and we got to see Ace Young get the boot on American Idol, which was a long time coming, even if Kellie Pickler was more deserving of the boot after her admitted butchering of "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered." Oh, and playoff hockey on OLN has been pretty good, especially as their second game "bonus coverage" seems to be taken right from the CBC - logo and all.
* The National Geographic Channel special on the Gospel of Judas, the restoration of which was partially funded by the NGS. I can only hope that the article in the latest issue of the magazine is less repetitive and dull than the special, which seemed like 40 minutes of material stuffed into 120 minutes of show. It was very disappointing.
* "Requiem," the episode of The West Wing that seemed like it was going to focus on the passing of Leo McGarry but spent a lot of time on transition issues. The best parts of the episode focused on Leo and on interplay between original cast members, which should have gotten the entire hour. The subplot on the Speaker of the House election could have waited a week.
* Sticking with the executive branch, the return of Commander in Chief was as disappointing as Aaron Barnhart's review indicated. I imagine it's a short list of shows that have a lead win a Golden Globe and still get cancelled in its first year, but there's a real chance that list will grow. Which is too bad; they're wasting a good cast.
* The first two episodes of Thief, a new FX drama starring Andre Braugher. It may still grow on me, but I had a lingering feeling that I was missing something as I watched.
* Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy both had clip shows last night. Why are they still doing this? I can perhaps forgive the latter show - they need to educate folks who've started watching since the Super Bowl - but Housewives? That's just padding.
On the plus side, we did catch up with 24, which is still implausibly delicious, and we got to see Ace Young get the boot on American Idol, which was a long time coming, even if Kellie Pickler was more deserving of the boot after her admitted butchering of "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered." Oh, and playoff hockey on OLN has been pretty good, especially as their second game "bonus coverage" seems to be taken right from the CBC - logo and all.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
If they ever have a Grey's Anatomy prequel
They should cast Paris Bennett from American Idol as a young Dr. Miranda Bailey. Paris would need to work on her voice (too high) and mannerisms (not nearly ass-kicking enough), but the look is there.
I can't say anyone else would be cast, though Seacrest could play someone who falls ill from too much spray-on tan.
I can't say anyone else would be cast, though Seacrest could play someone who falls ill from too much spray-on tan.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Participatory Fooling
If you've got a minute, head over to teevee.org and check out the TeeVeePedia, their TV-flavored spoof of Wikipedia. Not only is it funny, but there are several opportunities to add and edit stuff youself.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Idol Finalists
OK, we finally caught up to the show where they named the 12 finalists. Looking at how they performed, I'd have to say the most baffling decision was Bucky Covington over Geddeon McKinney. Not that either were gangbusters, but at least Geddion sang in a tolerable fashion.
I was also surprised at how overblown Ayla Brown's crying was. Well, maybe not surprised given how most of the rejected contestants are stage kids enough to put on a brave face. And also not surprised given the way media likes to crank things up to generate sales/ratings. Still, the way it was played up I was expecting a breakdown.
Further disappointment came at the much-reviled Brittenum twins being in the audience. Hope they weren't supposed to be on house arrest. Or maybe I do; a parole violation should keep them from making later "surprise" appearances.
I do know who the first two cuts are (obviously, given previous posts on Kevin Covais), and I'm still waiting for the first "surprise" cut. I'm hoping for Ace Young, as I really didn't need a cleaned-up version of Constantine Maroulis. Heck, I don't even need the original one.
I was also surprised at how overblown Ayla Brown's crying was. Well, maybe not surprised given how most of the rejected contestants are stage kids enough to put on a brave face. And also not surprised given the way media likes to crank things up to generate sales/ratings. Still, the way it was played up I was expecting a breakdown.
Further disappointment came at the much-reviled Brittenum twins being in the audience. Hope they weren't supposed to be on house arrest. Or maybe I do; a parole violation should keep them from making later "surprise" appearances.
I do know who the first two cuts are (obviously, given previous posts on Kevin Covais), and I'm still waiting for the first "surprise" cut. I'm hoping for Ace Young, as I really didn't need a cleaned-up version of Constantine Maroulis. Heck, I don't even need the original one.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
The Internet Just Doesn't Work
So after getting all sorts of national attention, you'd think that the power of VotefortheWorst.com would be at its height, right?
Apparently not, as Kevin Covais was eliminated last night. Let the conspiracy theories begin.
Apparently not, as Kevin Covais was eliminated last night. Let the conspiracy theories begin.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Bat the Brat
Good: Bravo's next season of Celebrity Poker Showdown will be at Harrah's in New Orleans, with the $1 million pot going to hurricane-related charities.
Bad: Phil Hellmuth replaces Phil Gordon as the poker expert. I don't think I could listen to his whiny ass for two hours. Sorry, Bravo. Nice work keeping Foley on, though. Call me when you hit the trifecta and bring in Phil Ivey as co-host.
Bad: Phil Hellmuth replaces Phil Gordon as the poker expert. I don't think I could listen to his whiny ass for two hours. Sorry, Bravo. Nice work keeping Foley on, though. Call me when you hit the trifecta and bring in Phil Ivey as co-host.
Democracy Just Doesn't Work
For anyone annoyed by the packaged hypefest that is American Idol, be sure to check out VotefortheWorst.com, a Web site dedicated to furthering the fortunes of the finalist adjudged the worst of the group. For this season, they've tabbed Kevin Covais, whose resemblance to the title character of Chicken Little and willingness to go along with the joke nabbed him the "honor."
The site claims "victories" for the finals runs of Johnathan Stevens and Jasmine Trias in season 3 and Janay Castine and Scott Savol from last season. Hard to say how much impact they really had, as the first two had a "cute" factor helping them (Johnathan with the moms, Jasmine with the teenaged boys), and Savol wasn't that bad of a singer (with him, it was everything else). But with the publicity the site's gotten of late, I would not be surprised if they get more help with pushing Covais deep into the finals.
The site seems primed to replace Covais with Kellie Pickler if he fails, which seems like a cheat given how much the show has pushed her as a finalist. I would suggest Bucky Covington, who doesn't have the Idol "look" (i.e. he looks like an average person) and is not among the best singers.
There should be some sort of Internet-led vote hall of fame for Covais, Kemal Ataturk (who won Time's Person of the Millenium on-line vote) and Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (an Internet vote-in for People magazine's list of the most beautiful people.
The site claims "victories" for the finals runs of Johnathan Stevens and Jasmine Trias in season 3 and Janay Castine and Scott Savol from last season. Hard to say how much impact they really had, as the first two had a "cute" factor helping them (Johnathan with the moms, Jasmine with the teenaged boys), and Savol wasn't that bad of a singer (with him, it was everything else). But with the publicity the site's gotten of late, I would not be surprised if they get more help with pushing Covais deep into the finals.
The site seems primed to replace Covais with Kellie Pickler if he fails, which seems like a cheat given how much the show has pushed her as a finalist. I would suggest Bucky Covington, who doesn't have the Idol "look" (i.e. he looks like an average person) and is not among the best singers.
There should be some sort of Internet-led vote hall of fame for Covais, Kemal Ataturk (who won Time's Person of the Millenium on-line vote) and Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (an Internet vote-in for People magazine's list of the most beautiful people.
I'll Tell You What
I'm pretty happy to read that Fox has ordered more King of the Hill for next season. As much of an afterthought as it appears to be on the Fox schedule, it's at least the equal of The Simpsons, which will now spend two more seasons churning out episodes that will make second-rate entries appear brilliant.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Unexpected Catch Phrase Creep
The school I work at held a career fair yesterday. The heading on the flying advertising the event?
"Suit up!"
For all the success How I Met Your Mother has had this season, I wasn't expecting that. I figured the dating lemon law that Barney came up with would make the jump to real life first.
Speaking of Barney, there was a recent episode that gave more of his back-story, and now I'm confused. I was under the impression that Ted and Barney knew each other in college, but this episode mentioned how Barney used to be some hippie-type until his girlfriend left him for a guy who inspired Barney's current persona. Ted didn't seem to know Barney was like this, or at least the episode didn't explain that he did. This strikes me as more of a continuity problem than the Belle & Sebastian thing, but given how closely I follow the show (i.e. not that close) I may be mistaken as to how Ted and Barney originally met.
"Suit up!"
For all the success How I Met Your Mother has had this season, I wasn't expecting that. I figured the dating lemon law that Barney came up with would make the jump to real life first.
Speaking of Barney, there was a recent episode that gave more of his back-story, and now I'm confused. I was under the impression that Ted and Barney knew each other in college, but this episode mentioned how Barney used to be some hippie-type until his girlfriend left him for a guy who inspired Barney's current persona. Ted didn't seem to know Barney was like this, or at least the episode didn't explain that he did. This strikes me as more of a continuity problem than the Belle & Sebastian thing, but given how closely I follow the show (i.e. not that close) I may be mistaken as to how Ted and Barney originally met.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Whammied
I don't have much to say about Peter Tomarken's death in a plane crash yesterday. Bad enough to have it happen, worse that it was a volunteer medical flight (not exactly being how you'd want to get paid back for charity).
If you've not seen Big Bucks, the special about the Press Your Luck "scandal" involving Michael Larson's memorization-abetted windfall, I'd suggest checking the GSN listings. It's sure to be re-aired in the coming days, and is pretty interesting.
If you've not seen Big Bucks, the special about the Press Your Luck "scandal" involving Michael Larson's memorization-abetted windfall, I'd suggest checking the GSN listings. It's sure to be re-aired in the coming days, and is pretty interesting.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Fox: All Idol All the Time
OK, that's a bit of an exaggeration; I think there are still a couple of days where American Idol isn't on Fox's schedule. For now.
Long-time readers of the main blog know I've had an Idol thing from the start, and have recapped episodes in reasonable detail (which explains why I have so few long-time readers). That's waned over the last couple of seasons, and continues to now, given how the show has become predictable in its approach and how its "stars" haven't quite lit up the music world as predicted, Kelly Clarkson notwithstanding.
(NOTE: I know Carrie Underwood is doing pretty well, but mostly within the country genre. If she ever crosses over to pop success, we'll talk.)
This season kicked off with seven audition stops, which were good for about a month of shows that increasingly cover the bad and ugly rather than the good. For next season, I expect nine audition stops that'll provide show material through the end of February.
Then it was "Hollywood" week (though they seem to be closer to Hollywood now than the season they spent the week in what looked like a Century City warehouse), where they pared 175 contestants to 24. There's been some inflation in the number of semi-finalists, too. I figure next year it'll be 28, taking the semifinals through April.
I did watch a reasonable amount of the shows about Hollywood week, and was aghast at the amount of screen time given to Derrell and Terrell Brittenum, a set of twins who, unlike every other set of twins to audition, were sent through to the next round together. It doesn't help that they are incredibly obnoxious drama queens whose attitude far outpaces their talent. The saving grace, as you may have heard, is that they were both picked up for a variety of felonies of the fraud and identity theft varieties.
You can look for them in the upcoming CourtTV series Prison Idol.
Anyway, from watching the shows for Hollywood week this year it seems like there was less everything - less time seeing people sing, less time showing the conflicts when contestants were preparing for group singings, etc. Not sure if that's a factor of the number of contestants, the filler material of the contestants playing tourist, or commercials. Probably all three.
But now we're down to 16, as 8 semifinalists have been cut. No real surprises yet, other than one contestant's Maxim photos coming too late to save her from a brutal first week of competition. People to look out for:
* Kellie Pickler, who is a combination of Carrie Underwood (looks) and Fantasia Barrino (home state and tragic back-story). The show spent a lot of time hammering away at her background, so she's likely a lock for the finals.
* Taylor Hicks, who stands out not only for his head of prematurely greying hair but for being Ray Charles reincarnated, down to the body sway. He's my favorite because he's so incongruous.
* Paris Bennett, who may be a little too comfortable given that her grandmother is some well-known gospel singer (OK, not well-known to me, but Randy Jackson freaked out a bit in a fanboy way when he saw the grandmother at the original audition). Paris can at least sing.
* Ace Young, who I learned today is dating Essence Atkins, who I'd never heard of, a fact easily explained by her being a lead on the UPN sitcom Half & Half. He's apparently been on the show and even sang a little. He's like Constantine from last year, but with better grooming and less leering (and, thankfully, less eye makeup).
* And, finally, Ayla Brown, who I've saved for the end given that she's a local, from Wrentham (best known, probably, for its outlet mall). In many ways she's the anti-Pickler, both in looks (Brown has, fittingly, darker hair and skin tone) and background - she went to private school and landed a basketball scholarship to Boston College. On top of that, her mom is a local TV news reporter and anchor, while her dad is a state senator and likely lieutenant governor candidate.
(This led to a funny moment during the show where they reduced the field to 24, where they showed Seacrest asking Brown's father a question, but cut his response with an abrupt edit, apparently in fear of having to give other candidates equal time.)
"Conventional wisdom" (which applies to this show how?) suggests she won't win, but the judges seem to be warming to her. I'm still on the fence, given that her dad's a Republican and she's joining up with that school in Newton.
So there you go. A post almost as long and tedious as an episode of the show.
Long-time readers of the main blog know I've had an Idol thing from the start, and have recapped episodes in reasonable detail (which explains why I have so few long-time readers). That's waned over the last couple of seasons, and continues to now, given how the show has become predictable in its approach and how its "stars" haven't quite lit up the music world as predicted, Kelly Clarkson notwithstanding.
(NOTE: I know Carrie Underwood is doing pretty well, but mostly within the country genre. If she ever crosses over to pop success, we'll talk.)
This season kicked off with seven audition stops, which were good for about a month of shows that increasingly cover the bad and ugly rather than the good. For next season, I expect nine audition stops that'll provide show material through the end of February.
Then it was "Hollywood" week (though they seem to be closer to Hollywood now than the season they spent the week in what looked like a Century City warehouse), where they pared 175 contestants to 24. There's been some inflation in the number of semi-finalists, too. I figure next year it'll be 28, taking the semifinals through April.
I did watch a reasonable amount of the shows about Hollywood week, and was aghast at the amount of screen time given to Derrell and Terrell Brittenum, a set of twins who, unlike every other set of twins to audition, were sent through to the next round together. It doesn't help that they are incredibly obnoxious drama queens whose attitude far outpaces their talent. The saving grace, as you may have heard, is that they were both picked up for a variety of felonies of the fraud and identity theft varieties.
You can look for them in the upcoming CourtTV series Prison Idol.
Anyway, from watching the shows for Hollywood week this year it seems like there was less everything - less time seeing people sing, less time showing the conflicts when contestants were preparing for group singings, etc. Not sure if that's a factor of the number of contestants, the filler material of the contestants playing tourist, or commercials. Probably all three.
But now we're down to 16, as 8 semifinalists have been cut. No real surprises yet, other than one contestant's Maxim photos coming too late to save her from a brutal first week of competition. People to look out for:
* Kellie Pickler, who is a combination of Carrie Underwood (looks) and Fantasia Barrino (home state and tragic back-story). The show spent a lot of time hammering away at her background, so she's likely a lock for the finals.
* Taylor Hicks, who stands out not only for his head of prematurely greying hair but for being Ray Charles reincarnated, down to the body sway. He's my favorite because he's so incongruous.
* Paris Bennett, who may be a little too comfortable given that her grandmother is some well-known gospel singer (OK, not well-known to me, but Randy Jackson freaked out a bit in a fanboy way when he saw the grandmother at the original audition). Paris can at least sing.
* Ace Young, who I learned today is dating Essence Atkins, who I'd never heard of, a fact easily explained by her being a lead on the UPN sitcom Half & Half. He's apparently been on the show and even sang a little. He's like Constantine from last year, but with better grooming and less leering (and, thankfully, less eye makeup).
* And, finally, Ayla Brown, who I've saved for the end given that she's a local, from Wrentham (best known, probably, for its outlet mall). In many ways she's the anti-Pickler, both in looks (Brown has, fittingly, darker hair and skin tone) and background - she went to private school and landed a basketball scholarship to Boston College. On top of that, her mom is a local TV news reporter and anchor, while her dad is a state senator and likely lieutenant governor candidate.
(This led to a funny moment during the show where they reduced the field to 24, where they showed Seacrest asking Brown's father a question, but cut his response with an abrupt edit, apparently in fear of having to give other candidates equal time.)
"Conventional wisdom" (which applies to this show how?) suggests she won't win, but the judges seem to be warming to her. I'm still on the fence, given that her dad's a Republican and she's joining up with that school in Newton.
So there you go. A post almost as long and tedious as an episode of the show.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
OlympicsWatch: The Ads
OK, I stopped doing the day by day listings because they wound up restating a large portion of the day's events rather than focus on one or two. That and I got bored with it. Sorry.
But sticking with the Olympics, watching has allowed me to see some of the top-rated Super Bowl ads, as companies have been getting some extra life out of them. Having now seen the Bud Light "magic fridge" ad, it appears that the ads for Super Bowl XL were as forgettable as the game itself. I really didn't miss anything by skipping most of the first half.
As for new ads, the bulk of them are pretty forgettable, too. They mostly play off of the usual Olympic themes of striving for goals and success, and whether they be inspiring or "humorous," there's not much about any of them that gets me going. There are two that bear special mention, though:
1. The Chevrolet ad where a guy, the middle man of three spelling out "USA," gets frozen in a pond. Now, the decision to skip medical treatment in lieu of Weekend at Bernie's style hijinx is one thing. But towards the end of the ad, someone makes a sno-cone out of scrapings from the frozen guy's torso.
I didn't know Chevy was pro-cannibalism.
2. There's a DHL ad with Dan Jansen that shows him falling a lot as a backdrop for their "Olympic Spirit" award. Towards the end of the ad, Jansen is shown standing at the door to his home, watching a DHL delivery guy almost slip, and then take a header trying to walk up his snow and ice-covered drive. Jansen's response? "I know what that feels like."
Yes you do, Dan. So why don't you cart your ass out to the garage and break out the snowblower or some sand or something, rather than stand there like a jackass while some guy fractures his coccyx trying to bring you a package.
But sticking with the Olympics, watching has allowed me to see some of the top-rated Super Bowl ads, as companies have been getting some extra life out of them. Having now seen the Bud Light "magic fridge" ad, it appears that the ads for Super Bowl XL were as forgettable as the game itself. I really didn't miss anything by skipping most of the first half.
As for new ads, the bulk of them are pretty forgettable, too. They mostly play off of the usual Olympic themes of striving for goals and success, and whether they be inspiring or "humorous," there's not much about any of them that gets me going. There are two that bear special mention, though:
1. The Chevrolet ad where a guy, the middle man of three spelling out "USA," gets frozen in a pond. Now, the decision to skip medical treatment in lieu of Weekend at Bernie's style hijinx is one thing. But towards the end of the ad, someone makes a sno-cone out of scrapings from the frozen guy's torso.
I didn't know Chevy was pro-cannibalism.
2. There's a DHL ad with Dan Jansen that shows him falling a lot as a backdrop for their "Olympic Spirit" award. Towards the end of the ad, Jansen is shown standing at the door to his home, watching a DHL delivery guy almost slip, and then take a header trying to walk up his snow and ice-covered drive. Jansen's response? "I know what that feels like."
Yes you do, Dan. So why don't you cart your ass out to the garage and break out the snowblower or some sand or something, rather than stand there like a jackass while some guy fractures his coccyx trying to bring you a package.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
OlympicsWatch, Day 8
Top event for me is the US-Sweden semifinal in ice hockey. It'll be shown live tomorrow morning, looks to be around 11 am EST. There'll be curling at various times throughout the day, US women versus Russia earlier in the morning, men later in the day.
The sliding sports also come to the fore as we get two man bobsled and skeleton in the afternoon and in prime time. Also in prime time Lindsey Jacobellis tries to break the streak of hyped Americans going without medals when she competes in this snowboard cross that I've never heard of until now.
Oh, and there'll be ice dancing, too. Woo hoo.
The sliding sports also come to the fore as we get two man bobsled and skeleton in the afternoon and in prime time. Also in prime time Lindsey Jacobellis tries to break the streak of hyped Americans going without medals when she competes in this snowboard cross that I've never heard of until now.
Oh, and there'll be ice dancing, too. Woo hoo.
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Bored-room
Among the announcement of the contestants for the upcoming "season" of The Apprentice was the nugget that Carolyn and George, who have been assisting Trump in selecting his new hireling, will be stepping out for some number of episodes this season for two new helpers - Donald Trump, Jr. and his sister Ivanka.
This is the sort of idea that, if a team on the show tried it, would land them in the boardroom. Though I can at least see why Junior is in, he being the likely heir to Trump's yooge holdings. As for Ivanka... well, let's just say I hope to be surprised.
Now let's just hope they spice things up this season by having at least one challenge that isn't related to marketing. Wouldn't that be nice?
This is the sort of idea that, if a team on the show tried it, would land them in the boardroom. Though I can at least see why Junior is in, he being the likely heir to Trump's yooge holdings. As for Ivanka... well, let's just say I hope to be surprised.
Now let's just hope they spice things up this season by having at least one challenge that isn't related to marketing. Wouldn't that be nice?
When Judge Shows Invade Prime Time
One of the recurring themes of any judge show, from Judy to Mathis, is that the folks who appear in those fora tend not to display the greatest judgement. And while I like to chuckle at the legion of people who get cell phones under their own name for deadbeats, it worries me a bit when that lack of judgement seeps into prime time programming.
A couple examples have cropped up of late in ABC's programming. First, take the recent episode of Desperate Housewives where Bree, discovering that the man who was arrested for breaking into the Solis home (and who was the proximate cause of Gabrielle's miscarriage) and who is probably wanted after escaping from that hospital, chooses to call her friends rather than the cops. Huh?
Meanwhile, over on Lost, various castaways decide to place enough trust in Sawyer - the well known hoarder and con-man - that he eventually gets control over the group's firearms. Well done, idiots! You've got a guy who you can't trust as far as you can throw, but by all means let him manipulate you into doing his bidding. I suppose we can forgive Charlie - he's pissed at Locke and not that smart to begin with - but Locke and Kate?
I know, prime time TV programs more or less require this sort of poor decision-making to squeeze out episodes and further plot. But perhaps they could find a way to get to the same end without these decisions that seem out of character?
A couple examples have cropped up of late in ABC's programming. First, take the recent episode of Desperate Housewives where Bree, discovering that the man who was arrested for breaking into the Solis home (and who was the proximate cause of Gabrielle's miscarriage) and who is probably wanted after escaping from that hospital, chooses to call her friends rather than the cops. Huh?
Meanwhile, over on Lost, various castaways decide to place enough trust in Sawyer - the well known hoarder and con-man - that he eventually gets control over the group's firearms. Well done, idiots! You've got a guy who you can't trust as far as you can throw, but by all means let him manipulate you into doing his bidding. I suppose we can forgive Charlie - he's pissed at Locke and not that smart to begin with - but Locke and Kate?
I know, prime time TV programs more or less require this sort of poor decision-making to squeeze out episodes and further plot. But perhaps they could find a way to get to the same end without these decisions that seem out of character?
OlympicsWatch, Day 7
The daytime program has more live hockey (men) and curling (both). The prime time coverage is sure to focus on Yevgeny Plushenko's quest for gold in the men's figure skating long program. Failing that, he could probably get a job as a backup singer for The Darkness. Seriously, what's with his hair?
My main interest in prime time, though, will be speed skating's team pursuit. It seems like just the right amount of chaos for a sport involving ice and bladed footwear (don't get me wrong, I like short track, it just gets a little irritating with all the judge involvement).
Going back to today's programming, I was a little surprised during coverage of the Sweden-Kazahkstan game to hear multiple references to the Soviet Union. In the present tense. I know people don't always keep up with the news, but this seems negligent in the extreme.
My main interest in prime time, though, will be speed skating's team pursuit. It seems like just the right amount of chaos for a sport involving ice and bladed footwear (don't get me wrong, I like short track, it just gets a little irritating with all the judge involvement).
Going back to today's programming, I was a little surprised during coverage of the Sweden-Kazahkstan game to hear multiple references to the Soviet Union. In the present tense. I know people don't always keep up with the news, but this seems negligent in the extreme.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
OlympicsWatch, Day 6
Men's ice hockey kicks off on Wednesday, with 12 hours of live programming starting at 5 am EST. None of the games are between teams considered medal contenders. The most interesting match-up is probably the Czech Republic versus Germany, what with payback for the taking of the Sudetenland and all.
The US will play Latvia in a game that airs in the afternoon - but not live (at least the NBC schedule doesn't list it as such).
There's more curling (US women versus Denmark at 8 am, US men versus Italy at 5 pm).
Prime time coverage should focus on the women's downhill and the luge team of Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin, who are looking to medal in their third straight Games in doubles luge. But we'll probably get a heaping helping of Apollo Anton Ohno, whose skating in a couple of events. Jeremy Bloom competes in moguls (meaning we'll hear his skiing versus football story again), too.
The US will play Latvia in a game that airs in the afternoon - but not live (at least the NBC schedule doesn't list it as such).
There's more curling (US women versus Denmark at 8 am, US men versus Italy at 5 pm).
Prime time coverage should focus on the women's downhill and the luge team of Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin, who are looking to medal in their third straight Games in doubles luge. But we'll probably get a heaping helping of Apollo Anton Ohno, whose skating in a couple of events. Jeremy Bloom competes in moguls (meaning we'll hear his skiing versus football story again), too.
Monday, February 13, 2006
OlympicsWatch, Day 5
Highlights for Tuesday:
* More live curling in the very early hours of the morning.
* Live women's hockey in the more reasonable AM hours, with the live US-Finland game mid-afternoon.
* The usual plethora of events in prime-time, with the men's singles in figure skating the likely focus.
* More live curling in the very early hours of the morning.
* Live women's hockey in the more reasonable AM hours, with the live US-Finland game mid-afternoon.
* The usual plethora of events in prime-time, with the men's singles in figure skating the likely focus.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
OlympicsWatch, Day 4
Curling, baby!
See skips deliver rocks to the house for 10 ends on the first day of curling. The insomniacs (or unemployed) will enjoy live coverage starting in the wee small hours of the morning (EST), with tape coverage later in the day.
There's women's luge in the afternoon and the pairs figure skaters go tomorrow night. But curling!
See skips deliver rocks to the house for 10 ends on the first day of curling. The insomniacs (or unemployed) will enjoy live coverage starting in the wee small hours of the morning (EST), with tape coverage later in the day.
There's women's luge in the afternoon and the pairs figure skaters go tomorrow night. But curling!
Saturday, February 11, 2006
OlympicsWatch, Day 3
The US women's ice hockey team takes on Germany on USA network, while the NBC coverage will have the men's downhill skiing final, men's singles luge finals, and a raft of short-track speed skating. CNBC will have other women's ice hockey games as well.
We've not watched the entire opening ceremony yet, but we did find one thing odd about the first hour: Turin is referred to as Torino, yet all the other Italian cities are called by their English names. If you're going to use Torino, you should really also use Roma, Firenze, Milano, and the like.
We've not watched the entire opening ceremony yet, but we did find one thing odd about the first hour: Turin is referred to as Torino, yet all the other Italian cities are called by their English names. If you're going to use Torino, you should really also use Roma, Firenze, Milano, and the like.
Friday, February 10, 2006
OlympicWatch: Days 1 and 2
OK, here's my listing of what's worth watching each day for the Olympics. Consult your listings for full info on what's being shown. You could even try the TV listings on the NBC Olympic site, but it's awful. Half the time it doesn't load. I fear this presages future craptaculence by the NBC Universal family of networks, but let's think happy thoughts.
Day 1, Friday 2/10: Opening Ceremonies, 8 pm EST, NBC
Brian Williams steps in for Katie Couric. No word if he'll deliver the inane banter or if he'll leave it to Costas. They could make for an interesting pairing if they don't force Bruce Vilanch-type material on them.
There's a repeat airing at 2:30 am if you can't catch it in prime-time.
Day 2, Saturday 2/11: Women's ice hockey, USA-Switzerland, 12 pm EST, USA Network
The capper of 7.5 hours of women's hockey, with the previous two games (Finland-Germany and Sweden-Russia) kicking of at 7 am on CNBC.
The afternoon show on NBC (3-6 pm EST) will feature men's singles luge.
Prime time on NBC features the men's 5000 meters in speed skating. There's also moguls, pairs figure skating, and a men's downhill preview.
Day 1, Friday 2/10: Opening Ceremonies, 8 pm EST, NBC
Brian Williams steps in for Katie Couric. No word if he'll deliver the inane banter or if he'll leave it to Costas. They could make for an interesting pairing if they don't force Bruce Vilanch-type material on them.
There's a repeat airing at 2:30 am if you can't catch it in prime-time.
Day 2, Saturday 2/11: Women's ice hockey, USA-Switzerland, 12 pm EST, USA Network
The capper of 7.5 hours of women's hockey, with the previous two games (Finland-Germany and Sweden-Russia) kicking of at 7 am on CNBC.
The afternoon show on NBC (3-6 pm EST) will feature men's singles luge.
Prime time on NBC features the men's 5000 meters in speed skating. There's also moguls, pairs figure skating, and a men's downhill preview.
Friday, February 03, 2006
Do I Love Monkey? Meh.
"Meh" is about the most insightful thing I have to say about Love Monkey after watching the two episodes that have aired so far. It's not a bad show, but it's not particularly good, either. Which is too bad, as the set-up - Tom Cavanagh plays an A&R guy who is transitioning from a large label to an indie - is a nice break from the crime procedurals that clutter up the prime time landscape.
But I'm not sure this is going anywhere. The music-related subplots are OK - the first was a Jerry Maguire-inspired dash to sign a new talent, the most recent involved getting a star from Tom's old label to play a benefit sponsored by his new one - but there's a fakeness to it. I think it's the musician cameos, which seek stuck in to draw viewers. The second episode had both Ben Folds and LeAnn Rimes in very small speaking parts that had nothing to do with the show (outside, I suppose, showing that Tom knows all these big names).
That and Tom's apparent genius seems a little suspect to me. Take the last episode. The pop star wants to play one of her own songs at the benefit - an awful dirge called "My Inner Pain." She first plays this at a studio while interrupting a session with the hot new talent. To me the answer seems obvious - get the new kid, who says he's a fan of the pop star, to work with her. But when this eventually happens, it's hailed as visionary.
Perhaps I just watch too much TV and could see it coming.
The supporting cast is good but unexciting. There are some recognizable names among them (Jason Priestly, Larenz Tate, and Jane Greer most notably), but none of them have had much of anything interesting to do. Though there is promise in the friend who is a former baseball player turned sportscaster. At the end of the pilot he's seen bringing flowers and wine to someone's house - a male someone's house.
(Insert your own Mike Piazza joke here.)
Of course, this show may not last long enough for us to see how this - or anything else - plays out. We can only hope, given the likelihood of CSI: Bozeman if this doesn't get picked up for next season.
But I'm not sure this is going anywhere. The music-related subplots are OK - the first was a Jerry Maguire-inspired dash to sign a new talent, the most recent involved getting a star from Tom's old label to play a benefit sponsored by his new one - but there's a fakeness to it. I think it's the musician cameos, which seek stuck in to draw viewers. The second episode had both Ben Folds and LeAnn Rimes in very small speaking parts that had nothing to do with the show (outside, I suppose, showing that Tom knows all these big names).
That and Tom's apparent genius seems a little suspect to me. Take the last episode. The pop star wants to play one of her own songs at the benefit - an awful dirge called "My Inner Pain." She first plays this at a studio while interrupting a session with the hot new talent. To me the answer seems obvious - get the new kid, who says he's a fan of the pop star, to work with her. But when this eventually happens, it's hailed as visionary.
Perhaps I just watch too much TV and could see it coming.
The supporting cast is good but unexciting. There are some recognizable names among them (Jason Priestly, Larenz Tate, and Jane Greer most notably), but none of them have had much of anything interesting to do. Though there is promise in the friend who is a former baseball player turned sportscaster. At the end of the pilot he's seen bringing flowers and wine to someone's house - a male someone's house.
(Insert your own Mike Piazza joke here.)
Of course, this show may not last long enough for us to see how this - or anything else - plays out. We can only hope, given the likelihood of CSI: Bozeman if this doesn't get picked up for next season.
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Lame Duck
As you've likely heard, The West Wing will be ending its run this year, which makes a certain logical sense what with Jed Bartlett riding off into the sunset and the untimely passing of John Spenser. And I can't say I was too interested in watching a Santos or Vinick administration unfold; as much as I like Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda, I don't think either could match Martin Sheen's performance over the series.
Not that we've gotten to see too much of him this season, what with the focus on the campaign and all. Which is interesting, given how the original idea for the show was going to be light on POTUS and more about his staffers. I think that's what's made this season seem uneven for me - when Danny went off on CJ a couple of episodes ago about how Bartlett was running out the clock, it was hard to say if he was right or not because we'd seen him do precious little of anything. It makes one long for the days when we got a Presidential aside about Assyrian history or Victorian typography or something similarly esoteric.
Many of the articles I read in the wake of this announcement talked about how the show made government cool or brought civics to the masses, etc. I wouldn't go that far. It was entertaining - at times - and instructive on how government probably operates - at time, and with a caveat about the show reflecting the ideology of its creators - but not exactly a treatise on government written for the current generation. More often than not, though, what we got from The West Wing was entertaining and at least a little instructive. That's more than we get from most prime time fare.
Not that we've gotten to see too much of him this season, what with the focus on the campaign and all. Which is interesting, given how the original idea for the show was going to be light on POTUS and more about his staffers. I think that's what's made this season seem uneven for me - when Danny went off on CJ a couple of episodes ago about how Bartlett was running out the clock, it was hard to say if he was right or not because we'd seen him do precious little of anything. It makes one long for the days when we got a Presidential aside about Assyrian history or Victorian typography or something similarly esoteric.
Many of the articles I read in the wake of this announcement talked about how the show made government cool or brought civics to the masses, etc. I wouldn't go that far. It was entertaining - at times - and instructive on how government probably operates - at time, and with a caveat about the show reflecting the ideology of its creators - but not exactly a treatise on government written for the current generation. More often than not, though, what we got from The West Wing was entertaining and at least a little instructive. That's more than we get from most prime time fare.
U! P! Dead!
I was pretty stunned by today's announcement that the WB and UPN are planning to merge into something called The CW. It's not like either network was setting the world on fire, but given the rhetoric each has used towards the other, this wasn't the most obvious move.
It'll be interesting to see what gets saved and what gets dumped as they integrate each other's shows into a common schedule and try to combine the WB's quest for young viewers with UPN's "urban" demographic.
This is also a bonanza for TV dead poolers, but I'm pretty sure that's an unintended consequence. I'll be happy either way as long as Related doesn't survive the merger.
A merger also means that there are several current affiliates who will soon lose their network. I hope this marks a return to independent TV stations, who have some flexibility to offer distinct programming options. I worry that someone else will get the bright idea to form a new network out of the ashes of the merger. I am horrified at the possibility that all these stations will become shop at home or infomercial outlets.
I wonder if this is the Curse of Michigan J. Frog?
It'll be interesting to see what gets saved and what gets dumped as they integrate each other's shows into a common schedule and try to combine the WB's quest for young viewers with UPN's "urban" demographic.
This is also a bonanza for TV dead poolers, but I'm pretty sure that's an unintended consequence. I'll be happy either way as long as Related doesn't survive the merger.
A merger also means that there are several current affiliates who will soon lose their network. I hope this marks a return to independent TV stations, who have some flexibility to offer distinct programming options. I worry that someone else will get the bright idea to form a new network out of the ashes of the merger. I am horrified at the possibility that all these stations will become shop at home or infomercial outlets.
I wonder if this is the Curse of Michigan J. Frog?
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Bluths Saved?
According to a post over at TV Barn, both ABC and Showtime are making offers to pick up Arrested Development once Fox officially gives it the boot (interestingly, when Fox reduced the number of episodes to 13 this season it allowed a contract clause to kick in OKing these negotiations). ABC is looking for a one year deal, Showtime two. While the latter would allow the Bluths the full limits of their insanity, I am pulling for the ABC deal as it means I'd still get to watch for free.
Sunday, January 15, 2006
Daniel by the Book
While I've not seen any of The Book of Daniel yet - and from what I've read, I don't seem to be missing too much - I have enjoyed watching the contrivoversy unfold as it did for shows like God, the Devil and Bob and Nothing Sacred:
1. Network creates show involving religion that may or may not have elements religious folks and conservatives would objext to.
2. Those groups object anyway.
3. A handful of TV stations refuse to air the show. Network enjoys free publicity.
4. The show tanks, gets cancelled, we forget about the contretemps until some suit decides to repeat step one.
With that in mind, I wonder if it is impossible to create a show that takes a compelling look at contemporary religious issues? To my money the closest candidate was Nothing Sacred, whose depiction of an inner city Catholic parish showed promise when it wasn't trying to do either Issue of the Week or attempt to make star Kevin Anderson TV's hottest priest. It also had the misfortune of airing during the reign of Jamie Tarses at ABC, a woman who never met a show she couldn't cancel.
Other recent attempts haven't fared much better, as anyone who sat through an episode of the nonsensical Revelations could attest. The dueling John Paul II movies earlier this year failed to generate much interest, though it was entertaining to think of Jon Voight playing a pope.
History suggests that we like TV and religion combinations to be unthreatening and vaguely upbeat - hello 7th Heaven and Touched by an Angel - but with some of the great drama that's unspooling across TV sets now, you'd think that we could get one show that's about clerics rather than cops, lawyers, or forensic scientists. On the other hand Father Dowling Mysteries were pretty popular...
1. Network creates show involving religion that may or may not have elements religious folks and conservatives would objext to.
2. Those groups object anyway.
3. A handful of TV stations refuse to air the show. Network enjoys free publicity.
4. The show tanks, gets cancelled, we forget about the contretemps until some suit decides to repeat step one.
With that in mind, I wonder if it is impossible to create a show that takes a compelling look at contemporary religious issues? To my money the closest candidate was Nothing Sacred, whose depiction of an inner city Catholic parish showed promise when it wasn't trying to do either Issue of the Week or attempt to make star Kevin Anderson TV's hottest priest. It also had the misfortune of airing during the reign of Jamie Tarses at ABC, a woman who never met a show she couldn't cancel.
Other recent attempts haven't fared much better, as anyone who sat through an episode of the nonsensical Revelations could attest. The dueling John Paul II movies earlier this year failed to generate much interest, though it was entertaining to think of Jon Voight playing a pope.
History suggests that we like TV and religion combinations to be unthreatening and vaguely upbeat - hello 7th Heaven and Touched by an Angel - but with some of the great drama that's unspooling across TV sets now, you'd think that we could get one show that's about clerics rather than cops, lawyers, or forensic scientists. On the other hand Father Dowling Mysteries were pretty popular...
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
And They Danced
Notes from the first week of Dancing With the Stars:
* Kenny Mayne was the first "star" to get the boot. He shouldn't have been. Though he clearly would have been the second. His sense of humor will be missed, though his inability to display it in short bursts won't be.
* Master P should have gone first, given that he may be the one man in America who is a worse slow dancer than me. Not sure if he got through based on his fan base or the fan base of his partner, who danced on the first installment. And while sartorial idiocy seems the norm for ballroom dancing, I'm still wondering who thought the baseball cap with the rhinestone 'P' was a good idea.
* George Hamilton is no John O'Hurley. But he seems to recognize that.
* During the results show, Tatum O'Neal spent pretty much the entire half hour talking to her partner. He may just tank a dance next week so he can get some peace and quiet.
* The producer who decided that the two male judges should be more over the top needs to be beaten. The British guy is annoying but tolerable; the Italian guy makes Roberto Begnini seem restrained. The WWE woman who is in the competition (Stacey Kebler? Is that right?) should get involved.
* Speaking of whom, she dances very well. I'd not be surprised to see her in the finals.
* Can we get the folks at Intervention to get Lisa Rinna in for an episode to get her off the collagen? Make it a 2 hour episode, anything. Her lips need saving.
* Jerry Rice showed surprising skill, though I think he was trying to downplay expectations when he said during a sideline interview that the dancing was harder than going across the middle in the NFL. I think he'll do well, but may not outlast someone like Drew Lachey, who (like McIntyre last time) is showing that boy band dancing may be good for something.
* Oh, there was a crowd shot of Nick Lachey during the Thursday show. I wonder if that fulfills any contractual obligations for ABC? It's not like he and the ex-wife will be doing any more variety shows. Thank God.
* Tom Bergeron has a new co-host this year. I don't care for her. She's a little too much E! correspondent for me.
* Kenny Mayne was the first "star" to get the boot. He shouldn't have been. Though he clearly would have been the second. His sense of humor will be missed, though his inability to display it in short bursts won't be.
* Master P should have gone first, given that he may be the one man in America who is a worse slow dancer than me. Not sure if he got through based on his fan base or the fan base of his partner, who danced on the first installment. And while sartorial idiocy seems the norm for ballroom dancing, I'm still wondering who thought the baseball cap with the rhinestone 'P' was a good idea.
* George Hamilton is no John O'Hurley. But he seems to recognize that.
* During the results show, Tatum O'Neal spent pretty much the entire half hour talking to her partner. He may just tank a dance next week so he can get some peace and quiet.
* The producer who decided that the two male judges should be more over the top needs to be beaten. The British guy is annoying but tolerable; the Italian guy makes Roberto Begnini seem restrained. The WWE woman who is in the competition (Stacey Kebler? Is that right?) should get involved.
* Speaking of whom, she dances very well. I'd not be surprised to see her in the finals.
* Can we get the folks at Intervention to get Lisa Rinna in for an episode to get her off the collagen? Make it a 2 hour episode, anything. Her lips need saving.
* Jerry Rice showed surprising skill, though I think he was trying to downplay expectations when he said during a sideline interview that the dancing was harder than going across the middle in the NFL. I think he'll do well, but may not outlast someone like Drew Lachey, who (like McIntyre last time) is showing that boy band dancing may be good for something.
* Oh, there was a crowd shot of Nick Lachey during the Thursday show. I wonder if that fulfills any contractual obligations for ABC? It's not like he and the ex-wife will be doing any more variety shows. Thank God.
* Tom Bergeron has a new co-host this year. I don't care for her. She's a little too much E! correspondent for me.
Monday, January 09, 2006
A disturbing trend
Clip shows masquerading as "catch up" shows. ABC has done this twice with Desperate Housewives, did it last night with Grey's Anatomy, and will do it on Wednesday (also for the second time, I think) with Lost.
I can see the value for this for a show like Grey's Anatomy, which started in mid-season and built buzz as it went along. However, I think they could all be avoided if ABC would air new episodes in a normal manner. It seems like the last time we had new episodes of these three shows in the same week was sometime in November.
I can see the value for this for a show like Grey's Anatomy, which started in mid-season and built buzz as it went along. However, I think they could all be avoided if ABC would air new episodes in a normal manner. It seems like the last time we had new episodes of these three shows in the same week was sometime in November.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Televisions Second Most Exciting Season
It's midseason! So what new offerings are out there?
ABC - Most notable on the schedule is the Monday night "romance" lineup, with Emily's Reasons Why Not (starring Heather Graham), the inexplicable return of the John Stamos sitcom Jake in Progress, and the return of The Bachelor, this time a doctor who is handing out roses in Paris.
I can't say any of this interests me, which probably isn't a surprise given where I fall demographically. I'd happily tune in to look at Heather Graham if (a) this were HBO, thus increasing the odds of disrobing, and (b) she wasn't starting to take on Shelley Duval's bug-eyed look. Seriously, I find the protrusion of her eyes a little discomforting.
Thursday gives us the return of Dancing With the Stars and Crumbs, a new sitcom featuring the likes of Jane Curtin and Fred Savage. I'm sure I'll watch the former, given how the wife drew me in to the original (I suppose I'm rooting for Jerry Rice). The latter, eh. It strikes me as a watered-down Arrested Development, though it's supposed to be based on the family of the creator of Caroline in the City. That's strikes two and three right there.
Friday delivers inJustice - or is it In Justice? - where Kyle MacLachlan leads a team of lawyers and investigators focused on springing prisoners who were wrongly convicted. I suppose it's better than another police procedural. MacLachlan looks old, though I assume it's to give his character more gravitas.
CBS brings Jenna Elfman back to TV - were we really clamoring for that? - in Courting Alex, where Elfman plays an attorney who is looking for love, etc. It's based on a British show called According to Bex that I know almost nothing about, though the few comments I have seen were not kind.
On the positive, it has Dabney Coleman, which makes me want to like it. It also has Josh Randall, best known for playing Dr. Mike Burton on Ed. I may actually have to watch the first episode now. Argh.
Tom Cavanagh, Ed himself, stars in Love Monkey, a dramedy (sorry) about a single guy in the music industry. That it's an hour-long show not involving some facet of the government trying to either incarcerate or unincarcerate people, it already stands out.
CBS, in its wisdom, put the show on Tuesdays at 9. Where it gets to face Commander in Chief and an American Idol-amped House. Man, I hope Les Moonves is patient.
NBC will mostly get nods for the return of Scrubs and the return of the two hour sitcom block on Thursday, completed by the moving of My Name is Earl and The Office. One of their new shows is in that block, Four Kings. The four kings in questions are four single guys living in New York. I'm unsure if it's trying to be Friends or a male-themed Sex in the City. The Boston Globe review of it was unstinting in its criticism, comparing it to some of the lesser lights of "Must See TV" Thursdays past.
On Friday we get The Book of Daniel, where Aiden Quinn plays a minister with a variety of problems, some of which he hashes out in talks to Jesus - by which I mean face-to-face conversations, not just praying. A wackier Joan of Arcadia? Possibly.
Oh, and there are the Winter Olympics from Turin, which will take up a goodly chunk of February.
Fox is mostly returning stuff at mid-season, most notably 24 and American Idol (if you've seen more than 90 seconds of Fox primetime programming in the last month, you know about the latter show's return). The one new show: Skating With Celebrities. Why watch House and its fake injuries when you can see Dave Coulier give Nancy Kerrigan an actual subdural hematoma?
The WB brings back Beauty and the Geek and Life With Fran, but no new shows as of yet. That's kind of amazing.
U!P!N! offers two shows for people who like to look at and hear things, but maybe not pay that much attention. The first is Get This Party Started, where a team of party planners puts together an event for a deserving person. It's like Three Wishes, but with a DJ and cake.
The other show is South Beach, which tries to put some drama into the vapid Miami club and fashion scene. Jennifer Lopez is involved. Thankfully, it'll give way to a new cycle of America's Next Top Model sometime in early spring.
After seeing all this, I almost long for a show like Admiral Baby.
ABC - Most notable on the schedule is the Monday night "romance" lineup, with Emily's Reasons Why Not (starring Heather Graham), the inexplicable return of the John Stamos sitcom Jake in Progress, and the return of The Bachelor, this time a doctor who is handing out roses in Paris.
I can't say any of this interests me, which probably isn't a surprise given where I fall demographically. I'd happily tune in to look at Heather Graham if (a) this were HBO, thus increasing the odds of disrobing, and (b) she wasn't starting to take on Shelley Duval's bug-eyed look. Seriously, I find the protrusion of her eyes a little discomforting.
Thursday gives us the return of Dancing With the Stars and Crumbs, a new sitcom featuring the likes of Jane Curtin and Fred Savage. I'm sure I'll watch the former, given how the wife drew me in to the original (I suppose I'm rooting for Jerry Rice). The latter, eh. It strikes me as a watered-down Arrested Development, though it's supposed to be based on the family of the creator of Caroline in the City. That's strikes two and three right there.
Friday delivers inJustice - or is it In Justice? - where Kyle MacLachlan leads a team of lawyers and investigators focused on springing prisoners who were wrongly convicted. I suppose it's better than another police procedural. MacLachlan looks old, though I assume it's to give his character more gravitas.
CBS brings Jenna Elfman back to TV - were we really clamoring for that? - in Courting Alex, where Elfman plays an attorney who is looking for love, etc. It's based on a British show called According to Bex that I know almost nothing about, though the few comments I have seen were not kind.
On the positive, it has Dabney Coleman, which makes me want to like it. It also has Josh Randall, best known for playing Dr. Mike Burton on Ed. I may actually have to watch the first episode now. Argh.
Tom Cavanagh, Ed himself, stars in Love Monkey, a dramedy (sorry) about a single guy in the music industry. That it's an hour-long show not involving some facet of the government trying to either incarcerate or unincarcerate people, it already stands out.
CBS, in its wisdom, put the show on Tuesdays at 9. Where it gets to face Commander in Chief and an American Idol-amped House. Man, I hope Les Moonves is patient.
NBC will mostly get nods for the return of Scrubs and the return of the two hour sitcom block on Thursday, completed by the moving of My Name is Earl and The Office. One of their new shows is in that block, Four Kings. The four kings in questions are four single guys living in New York. I'm unsure if it's trying to be Friends or a male-themed Sex in the City. The Boston Globe review of it was unstinting in its criticism, comparing it to some of the lesser lights of "Must See TV" Thursdays past.
On Friday we get The Book of Daniel, where Aiden Quinn plays a minister with a variety of problems, some of which he hashes out in talks to Jesus - by which I mean face-to-face conversations, not just praying. A wackier Joan of Arcadia? Possibly.
Oh, and there are the Winter Olympics from Turin, which will take up a goodly chunk of February.
Fox is mostly returning stuff at mid-season, most notably 24 and American Idol (if you've seen more than 90 seconds of Fox primetime programming in the last month, you know about the latter show's return). The one new show: Skating With Celebrities. Why watch House and its fake injuries when you can see Dave Coulier give Nancy Kerrigan an actual subdural hematoma?
The WB brings back Beauty and the Geek and Life With Fran, but no new shows as of yet. That's kind of amazing.
U!P!N! offers two shows for people who like to look at and hear things, but maybe not pay that much attention. The first is Get This Party Started, where a team of party planners puts together an event for a deserving person. It's like Three Wishes, but with a DJ and cake.
The other show is South Beach, which tries to put some drama into the vapid Miami club and fashion scene. Jennifer Lopez is involved. Thankfully, it'll give way to a new cycle of America's Next Top Model sometime in early spring.
After seeing all this, I almost long for a show like Admiral Baby.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
This Party Was Over a Long Time Ago
I've been meaning to write something about the end of Monday Night Football, but have had some trouble getting motivated. Which, really, says more about my relationship to the show than anything.
The show clearly has places in both TV and sports history, at least. It also has some unusual cultural cachet - a fair number of Americans heard about John Lennon's killing on MNF, and we all got to talk about race in America when Alvin Garrett was compared to a primate. But for as much of a football fan as I am, MNF was must sample TV rather than must watch.
Four reasons come to mind for this:
1. My home team, the New England Patriots, once went 13 years without a Monday night appearance. It's not like they were being snubbed - the team was legitimately awful, and the city father of Foxborough generally had a negative stance on Monday night games. But when your team goes that long without getting on air, and when that dry spell is during one's formative years, you can see where that might set a pattern of casual viewing.
2. Some teams got on MNF based on demographics rather than talent. There's been some awful football on Monday nights, thanks to the need to show a lousy team from a major media market. I wouldn't watch these teams on a Sunday afternoon; why would I lose sleep to watch them during the week?
3. The games started at 9 pm (actually later, as the coverage started at 9). That guarantees a finish time after midnight (and generally closer to 1 am than midnight), which I could do when I was a student. Not so much now when I have to get up and go to work. I could have recorded games, but why bother when you can get a solid condensed recap on Sports Center or the like?
4. I can now see new football games, between college and pro, pretty much every night of the week. If there's not a new game, I can probably find a game from last week being repeated, or catch an old one on ESPN Classic. This saturation made Monday night less of a requirement for getting one's pigskin fix.
As for the personalities, I never really had the problems with booth or sideline personnel that others had, outside of Lisa Guererro, who was awful (possibly even worse than Eric Dickerson, who was at least entertaining in a fish out of water kind of way). I enjoyed the Dennis Miller experiment as much as John Madden's sound effects, and recall Howard Cosell's bombast as well as Frank Gifford's dull but sonorous voice. Speaking of which, he did not compare well to Don Meredith. Dandy Don looked pretty good, although he appeared on the last episode via tape, while Frank was live. So to speak.
(Also speaking of Gifford, I will say that the period where he did intros and Chris Berman did stuff from the ESPN Zone restaurant was not good, either. At least they killed that off quick.)
I suppose the biggest argument against missing MNF is that there will still be Monday night football - just on ESPN. Like the vast majority of America, I have that channel. I just hope they start the games earlier.
As an American male I should feel more passionate about the end of Monday Night Football, but I don't.
The show clearly has places in both TV and sports history, at least. It also has some unusual cultural cachet - a fair number of Americans heard about John Lennon's killing on MNF, and we all got to talk about race in America when Alvin Garrett was compared to a primate. But for as much of a football fan as I am, MNF was must sample TV rather than must watch.
Four reasons come to mind for this:
1. My home team, the New England Patriots, once went 13 years without a Monday night appearance. It's not like they were being snubbed - the team was legitimately awful, and the city father of Foxborough generally had a negative stance on Monday night games. But when your team goes that long without getting on air, and when that dry spell is during one's formative years, you can see where that might set a pattern of casual viewing.
2. Some teams got on MNF based on demographics rather than talent. There's been some awful football on Monday nights, thanks to the need to show a lousy team from a major media market. I wouldn't watch these teams on a Sunday afternoon; why would I lose sleep to watch them during the week?
3. The games started at 9 pm (actually later, as the coverage started at 9). That guarantees a finish time after midnight (and generally closer to 1 am than midnight), which I could do when I was a student. Not so much now when I have to get up and go to work. I could have recorded games, but why bother when you can get a solid condensed recap on Sports Center or the like?
4. I can now see new football games, between college and pro, pretty much every night of the week. If there's not a new game, I can probably find a game from last week being repeated, or catch an old one on ESPN Classic. This saturation made Monday night less of a requirement for getting one's pigskin fix.
As for the personalities, I never really had the problems with booth or sideline personnel that others had, outside of Lisa Guererro, who was awful (possibly even worse than Eric Dickerson, who was at least entertaining in a fish out of water kind of way). I enjoyed the Dennis Miller experiment as much as John Madden's sound effects, and recall Howard Cosell's bombast as well as Frank Gifford's dull but sonorous voice. Speaking of which, he did not compare well to Don Meredith. Dandy Don looked pretty good, although he appeared on the last episode via tape, while Frank was live. So to speak.
(Also speaking of Gifford, I will say that the period where he did intros and Chris Berman did stuff from the ESPN Zone restaurant was not good, either. At least they killed that off quick.)
I suppose the biggest argument against missing MNF is that there will still be Monday night football - just on ESPN. Like the vast majority of America, I have that channel. I just hope they start the games earlier.
As an American male I should feel more passionate about the end of Monday Night Football, but I don't.
Ringing in the New Year - Briefly
We decided to usher in 2006 in a low-key style, catching up on recorded TV and taking it easy. Even so, we avoided pretty much all of the New Year's Eve specials, save for two or three minutes to see the ball drop. This was long enough for me to make two comments:
1. Stuart Scott got in that final pointless comment of 2005 when he asked that viewers make a New Year's resolution not to boo athletes because they do things we can't do.
So please, people, don't boo the millionaires.
2. I didn't get to see much of Dick Clark on ABC, but I did get to hear him. As you'd expect from someone who'd had a stroke, his speech was slurred. But from the short bit I caught he was intelligible, and will hopefully make further progress in the new year. Signing Ryan Seacrest to co-host (and eventually take over) seems about right.
1. Stuart Scott got in that final pointless comment of 2005 when he asked that viewers make a New Year's resolution not to boo athletes because they do things we can't do.
So please, people, don't boo the millionaires.
2. I didn't get to see much of Dick Clark on ABC, but I did get to hear him. As you'd expect from someone who'd had a stroke, his speech was slurred. But from the short bit I caught he was intelligible, and will hopefully make further progress in the new year. Signing Ryan Seacrest to co-host (and eventually take over) seems about right.
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Deal Me In
Finally saw an episode of Deal or No Deal, and I have to say I enjoyed it. The premise is simple, the psychology behind it twisted at times, and it was fun to watch. Howie Mandel makes a good host (even if he looks like Dr. Evil's hipster younger brother), balancing the usual genial host role with playing on the fear and greed of the contestants. I was less amused with the last player on Friday, as it seemed a bit staged to have both a gift from her husband on hand and a chance to call him. Did they do this with other contestants?
I do fear over-exposure, as we're getting another run of the show this week (which I don't think was originally planned). Hopefully, they'll put the thing on ice until Feburary sweeps after the second week is over.
I do fear over-exposure, as we're getting another run of the show this week (which I don't think was originally planned). Hopefully, they'll put the thing on ice until Feburary sweeps after the second week is over.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Spanning the Globes
OK, so the Golden Globe nominations came out last week. The TV nods are as follows:
Best Drama: Lost, Prison Break, Grey's Anatomy, Rome, Commander in Chief
Lost is the only returning nominee. I assume Deadwood and The Sopranos were ineligible due to their unorthodox (by network standards) schedules, but I'm a little surprised that Nip/Tuck and 24 got passed over.
Out of the new nominees, I'm probably most surprised by Commander in Chief, which isn't too bad but doesn't really strike me as being one of the best five dramas on all of TV.
I don't watch Prison Break or Rome, so it's hard to handicap this one. I'd be tempted to go with Lost, but the slow pace of the season is pissing me off. Leaving my choice as Grey's Anatomy, which I think is better than CinC but doesn't exactly feel like the best drama out there.
Best Comedy - Curb Your Enthusiasm, Desperate Housewives, Entourage, Everybody Hates Chris, My Name is Earl, Weeds
I still don't feel like Desperate Housewives is a comedy, though its comedy is probably less ham-handed than its drama, so I'll just have to accept it. I don't watch any of the shows that are on pay cable, and I've not yet gotten into My Name is Earl. Which makes my pick, more or less by default, Everybody Hates Chris. Not that I think it'll win. I figure one of the cable shows will take it, and I look forward to a Larry David - Jeremy Piven grudge match.
Best Actor, Drama - Patrick Dempsey (Grey's Anatomy), Matthew Fox (Lost), Hugh Lawrie (House), Wentworth Miller (Prison Break), Kiefer Sutherland (24)
For my money there's no choice - if you can make an insufferable bastard likeable and betray exactly no vocal evidence that you're not actually American, you win. Hugh Lawrie, come on down!
Best Actress, Drama - Patricia Arquette (Medium), Glenn Close (The Shield), Geena Davis (Commander in Chief), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer), Polly Walker (Rome)
Pretty good group. Arquette has prior award wins in this role, Close and David bring star power, and Sedgwick has hugely popular press for her work. All of which means Polly Walker will probably win.
Best Actor, Comedy - Zach Braff (Scrubs), Steve Carrell (The Office), Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Jason Lee (My Name is Earl), Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men)
Uh, Charlie Sheen? Really? I'd have loved to see a nomination for Tyler James Williams, who plays young Chris Rock on Everybody Hates Chris instead, but OK.
I'll go with Steve Carrell.
Best Actress, Comedy - all the actresses from Desperate Housewives and Mary-Louise Parker from Weeds
At least we don't get the entertainment reporters hyperventilating over which housewife got snubbed. Continuing a theme, though, a nod for Tichina Arnold, who plays Rochelle Rock on Everybody Hates Chris would have gone down nicely.
I'll go with Marcia Cross here, on the theory that Felicity Huffman might get something for Transamerica.
Supporting Actress - Candace Bergen (Boston Legal), Camryn Manheim (Elvis), Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy), Elizabeth Perkins (Weeds), Joanne Woodward (Empire Falls)
As much as I like Oh's work, I'd have rather seen a nod for castmate Chandra Wilson, who plays senior resident Dr. Miranda Bailey. She gets a lot less screen time, but does great things with it. She's kind of a female House, but without the loathing and the stubble.
Supporting Actor - Naveen Andrews (Lost), Paul Newman (Empire Falls), Jeremy Piven (Entourage), Randy Quaid (Elvis), Donald Sutherland (Commander in Chief)
Hard to pick against Paul Newman, on legend appeal alone. And with the absence of Terry O'Quinn, I'm OK with that.
Best Drama: Lost, Prison Break, Grey's Anatomy, Rome, Commander in Chief
Lost is the only returning nominee. I assume Deadwood and The Sopranos were ineligible due to their unorthodox (by network standards) schedules, but I'm a little surprised that Nip/Tuck and 24 got passed over.
Out of the new nominees, I'm probably most surprised by Commander in Chief, which isn't too bad but doesn't really strike me as being one of the best five dramas on all of TV.
I don't watch Prison Break or Rome, so it's hard to handicap this one. I'd be tempted to go with Lost, but the slow pace of the season is pissing me off. Leaving my choice as Grey's Anatomy, which I think is better than CinC but doesn't exactly feel like the best drama out there.
Best Comedy - Curb Your Enthusiasm, Desperate Housewives, Entourage, Everybody Hates Chris, My Name is Earl, Weeds
I still don't feel like Desperate Housewives is a comedy, though its comedy is probably less ham-handed than its drama, so I'll just have to accept it. I don't watch any of the shows that are on pay cable, and I've not yet gotten into My Name is Earl. Which makes my pick, more or less by default, Everybody Hates Chris. Not that I think it'll win. I figure one of the cable shows will take it, and I look forward to a Larry David - Jeremy Piven grudge match.
Best Actor, Drama - Patrick Dempsey (Grey's Anatomy), Matthew Fox (Lost), Hugh Lawrie (House), Wentworth Miller (Prison Break), Kiefer Sutherland (24)
For my money there's no choice - if you can make an insufferable bastard likeable and betray exactly no vocal evidence that you're not actually American, you win. Hugh Lawrie, come on down!
Best Actress, Drama - Patricia Arquette (Medium), Glenn Close (The Shield), Geena Davis (Commander in Chief), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer), Polly Walker (Rome)
Pretty good group. Arquette has prior award wins in this role, Close and David bring star power, and Sedgwick has hugely popular press for her work. All of which means Polly Walker will probably win.
Best Actor, Comedy - Zach Braff (Scrubs), Steve Carrell (The Office), Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Jason Lee (My Name is Earl), Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men)
Uh, Charlie Sheen? Really? I'd have loved to see a nomination for Tyler James Williams, who plays young Chris Rock on Everybody Hates Chris instead, but OK.
I'll go with Steve Carrell.
Best Actress, Comedy - all the actresses from Desperate Housewives and Mary-Louise Parker from Weeds
At least we don't get the entertainment reporters hyperventilating over which housewife got snubbed. Continuing a theme, though, a nod for Tichina Arnold, who plays Rochelle Rock on Everybody Hates Chris would have gone down nicely.
I'll go with Marcia Cross here, on the theory that Felicity Huffman might get something for Transamerica.
Supporting Actress - Candace Bergen (Boston Legal), Camryn Manheim (Elvis), Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy), Elizabeth Perkins (Weeds), Joanne Woodward (Empire Falls)
As much as I like Oh's work, I'd have rather seen a nod for castmate Chandra Wilson, who plays senior resident Dr. Miranda Bailey. She gets a lot less screen time, but does great things with it. She's kind of a female House, but without the loathing and the stubble.
Supporting Actor - Naveen Andrews (Lost), Paul Newman (Empire Falls), Jeremy Piven (Entourage), Randy Quaid (Elvis), Donald Sutherland (Commander in Chief)
Hard to pick against Paul Newman, on legend appeal alone. And with the absence of Terry O'Quinn, I'm OK with that.
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Winging Away
I was going to post something about why the current run of The West Wing is so much less entertaining than episodes from even a couple of seasons ago, but then last night I ran across the news that John Spencer had died of a heart attack.
One of the few joys of the current season is the too-infrequent appearances of Leo McGarry. His re-emergence in the most recent episode, where he was bandied about as becoming both VP candidate and campaign director, was a nice treat. It is sad to think there may not be many more of them to come.
One of the few joys of the current season is the too-infrequent appearances of Leo McGarry. His re-emergence in the most recent episode, where he was bandied about as becoming both VP candidate and campaign director, was a nice treat. It is sad to think there may not be many more of them to come.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
How You Doin'? Not So Good.
In the AfterMASH or Frasier dichotomy, Joey is proving to be a combination of the two: a single character from a strong ensemble show moves west to poor ratings and flops around for a couple seasons before being put out of its misery.
Not that Joey is dead yet, but it's being pushed off the schedule in the new year so My Name is Earl and The Office can move over to Thursday and re-establish NBC's two hour comedy block (along with Will & Grace and a new show called Four Kings that sounds like the bastard child of Friends and Sex in the City). After the Olympics, Joey is slated to return - but not to Thursday. So ends the Friends legacy on that night.
Were I to guess where Joey will end up, the most obvious spot is Tuesday at 9:30, after Scrubs. I don't see those two as particularly complimentary, and wonder how many of either show's fan base would tune in to the other one.
I suppose it could return to Thursday if Four Kings is DOA, but it'd have to be well and truly dead. NBC's shown some patience with sitcoms, and if they've been willing to give Joey and The Office a second season, I figure they'll at least give Four Kings half of one. The other option, of course, is an accelerated burn off in an hour-long slot to open up some time during May sweeps (just hope it's not for more fare like The Posideon Adventure).
In any case, it's not looking good. David Schwimmer better get in his guest appearance now.
Not that Joey is dead yet, but it's being pushed off the schedule in the new year so My Name is Earl and The Office can move over to Thursday and re-establish NBC's two hour comedy block (along with Will & Grace and a new show called Four Kings that sounds like the bastard child of Friends and Sex in the City). After the Olympics, Joey is slated to return - but not to Thursday. So ends the Friends legacy on that night.
Were I to guess where Joey will end up, the most obvious spot is Tuesday at 9:30, after Scrubs. I don't see those two as particularly complimentary, and wonder how many of either show's fan base would tune in to the other one.
I suppose it could return to Thursday if Four Kings is DOA, but it'd have to be well and truly dead. NBC's shown some patience with sitcoms, and if they've been willing to give Joey and The Office a second season, I figure they'll at least give Four Kings half of one. The other option, of course, is an accelerated burn off in an hour-long slot to open up some time during May sweeps (just hope it's not for more fare like The Posideon Adventure).
In any case, it's not looking good. David Schwimmer better get in his guest appearance now.
No Pie for Me
For what it's worth, I struck out in the great Dave's Mom pie guessing contest. I went with cherry and rhubarb, and she actually made pumpkin (for like the fifth year in a row) and blueberry (which I don't think she'd done before).
In related Dave news I have yet to watch the Oprah episode, but hear that it was what you'd expect, which is too bad. I was hoping for at least one appearance of the Oprah Log, but it wasn't to be.
In completely unrelated news, I am finally caught up with Lost. I'm at a stage of this show that feels kind of like where I was during my late-blooming viewership of The X-Files, where the information is coming just a little too slowly for my taste. I also can't say I was shocked by last week's ending, where Walt and his dad re-connect on the bunker's computer. If they really wanted it to be shocking, it should have been Shannon (better - Michael's wife) on the other end of the box. That would have been a serious mind-bender.
In related Dave news I have yet to watch the Oprah episode, but hear that it was what you'd expect, which is too bad. I was hoping for at least one appearance of the Oprah Log, but it wasn't to be.
In completely unrelated news, I am finally caught up with Lost. I'm at a stage of this show that feels kind of like where I was during my late-blooming viewership of The X-Files, where the information is coming just a little too slowly for my taste. I also can't say I was shocked by last week's ending, where Walt and his dad re-connect on the bunker's computer. If they really wanted it to be shocking, it should have been Shannon (better - Michael's wife) on the other end of the box. That would have been a serious mind-bender.
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Yesterday's News
A few TV-related stories I thought were interesting:
* Oprah to appear on Dave - after years of jokes and being "totally out of town," Oprah Winfrey has finally relented to appear on Late Show with David Letterman. Not surprisingly, the musical version of The Color Purple premieres that night. I doubt they'll spend much time reading from the Oprah Log.
Please tell me that the other guest that night is Uma Thurman...
Speaking of Dave, be sure to tune in tomorrow when Dave makes his annual guesses as to what pies his mom made for Thanksgiving dessert. And if you'd like compete in the guessing rather than just watch, you can try to win a pie by submitting your own guesses.
* Simon Cowell no longer on American Idol? It's a possibility, as he's still negotiating his contract with the show and is involved in a lawsuit with show creator Simon Fuller, who claims that Cowell stole the format for his popular British talent/reality show The X Factor. The winner of this year's American Idol also won't be required to sign with Cowell's label, and he's not particularly interested in making a star for someone else.
Assuming he does leave, I'd expect Nigel Lythgoe to step in based on his work on both American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance?. Given that I found the latter show dull and its panel of five judges irritating beyond belief, I don't see such a replacement going well. Based on his performance as a guest judge, I'd rather see Mark McGrath take the spot - he wasn't as cutting as Cowell, but he's more likely to not get involved in a contestant-praising tongue bath than Lythgoe, Randy Jackson, or Paula Abdul.
* Speaking of actual news, Ted Koppel anchored his final episode of Nightline last night. There's some sort of anchor team in place to replace him, and considering that one of the members is noted Michael Jackson interviewer Martin Bashir, I don't have good feelings about the future of the program. Good night and good luck, indeed.
* Oprah to appear on Dave - after years of jokes and being "totally out of town," Oprah Winfrey has finally relented to appear on Late Show with David Letterman. Not surprisingly, the musical version of The Color Purple premieres that night. I doubt they'll spend much time reading from the Oprah Log.
Please tell me that the other guest that night is Uma Thurman...
Speaking of Dave, be sure to tune in tomorrow when Dave makes his annual guesses as to what pies his mom made for Thanksgiving dessert. And if you'd like compete in the guessing rather than just watch, you can try to win a pie by submitting your own guesses.
* Simon Cowell no longer on American Idol? It's a possibility, as he's still negotiating his contract with the show and is involved in a lawsuit with show creator Simon Fuller, who claims that Cowell stole the format for his popular British talent/reality show The X Factor. The winner of this year's American Idol also won't be required to sign with Cowell's label, and he's not particularly interested in making a star for someone else.
Assuming he does leave, I'd expect Nigel Lythgoe to step in based on his work on both American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance?. Given that I found the latter show dull and its panel of five judges irritating beyond belief, I don't see such a replacement going well. Based on his performance as a guest judge, I'd rather see Mark McGrath take the spot - he wasn't as cutting as Cowell, but he's more likely to not get involved in a contestant-praising tongue bath than Lythgoe, Randy Jackson, or Paula Abdul.
* Speaking of actual news, Ted Koppel anchored his final episode of Nightline last night. There's some sort of anchor team in place to replace him, and considering that one of the members is noted Michael Jackson interviewer Martin Bashir, I don't have good feelings about the future of the program. Good night and good luck, indeed.
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
The House of Walgreens
The saddest thing I've seen this season of America's Next Top Model? A weekly "My Life as a Cover Girl" ad where the winner of the last "cycle," Naima Mora, spent a day signing autographs at Walgreens.
Now, I don't suppose I have much room to talk - Walgreens has never brought me in to sign things, at least outside of charge slips - but there's clearly a difference between life as a Cover Girl and life as a Top Model. Sadly, in the case of this show's winners, it doesn't appear to be all that much.
Thankfully, the remaining contestants in the current "cycle" seem like they'd be perfect appearing at mid-budget drug stores.
Now, I don't suppose I have much room to talk - Walgreens has never brought me in to sign things, at least outside of charge slips - but there's clearly a difference between life as a Cover Girl and life as a Top Model. Sadly, in the case of this show's winners, it doesn't appear to be all that much.
Thankfully, the remaining contestants in the current "cycle" seem like they'd be perfect appearing at mid-budget drug stores.
Cheerio, Trio
Word comes today that NBC is finally pulling the plug on Trio, an off-beat little network that you probably didn't get unless you had a dish (though DirecTV dropped it, removing about 12 million subscribers) or one of the higher-end digital cable packages. It will be re-launched on broadband via the Bravo website, retaining some of its current programming (such as the now ironically-named short-run series compendium Brilliant But Cancelled) while developing new content for its new form.
We don't get Trio on our current package, but I've had it before, and enjoyed its mix of original stuff and reruns of The Larry Sanders Show and Late Night with David Letterman. You get the sense that Trio was doomed from the start - too small to compete, too useful to NBC for other purposes once bought - but it will be missed all the same.
The hole left in the digital landscape by Trio's demise will seemingly be plugged by a mystery-themed channel called Sleuth. Not sure what the content of this will be like, but given what NBC's done with Bravo, expect one or two original series that will get run into the ground and re-runs of NBC properties.
We don't get Trio on our current package, but I've had it before, and enjoyed its mix of original stuff and reruns of The Larry Sanders Show and Late Night with David Letterman. You get the sense that Trio was doomed from the start - too small to compete, too useful to NBC for other purposes once bought - but it will be missed all the same.
The hole left in the digital landscape by Trio's demise will seemingly be plugged by a mystery-themed channel called Sleuth. Not sure what the content of this will be like, but given what NBC's done with Bravo, expect one or two original series that will get run into the ground and re-runs of NBC properties.
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Hey! I know her!
I rarely (OK, pretty much never) get to say such a thing when the credits are rolling during a TV show, but I did the other day when watching an episode of NBC's version of The Office. Turns out that Jennifer Celotta, who I worked with as a RA back in the day, got a supervising producer credit on that episode (and has writing credits for the show, as well as writing and/or producing credits on shows from Home Improvement to Andy Richter Controls the Universe).
I've not talked to her in well nigh a decade, but it was a happy feeling to see the name of someone I'd still consider a friend displayed on national TV. I'm sure she'll feel the same way when she Googles herself and finds her name on this dog and pony show (well, dog show, I couldn't afford to keep the pony).
As for The Office, you are now all commanded to watch it. *Clap Clap*!
I've not talked to her in well nigh a decade, but it was a happy feeling to see the name of someone I'd still consider a friend displayed on national TV. I'm sure she'll feel the same way when she Googles herself and finds her name on this dog and pony show (well, dog show, I couldn't afford to keep the pony).
As for The Office, you are now all commanded to watch it. *Clap Clap*!
Thursday, October 27, 2005
It's not that confusing
So Donald Trump recently blamed "confusion" for the ratings problem the original version of The Apprentice is having, saying that the Martha viewers caused this "confusion" and that her ratings tailspin is causing the problem with the mothership - which The Donald claims he predicted.
Just as he predicted he could take the USFL into the fall and run profitable casinos in Atlantic City, I'm sure.
My theory is a little different. I think the ratings are down because The Apprentice is formulaic and boring. The problems?
1. There are too many contestants. It takes a good three weeks to get the names down, and even then some of those names belong to the crazies who get fired early. We're six weeks in and I still can't tell most of the guys apart.
2. The tasks are repetitive. Even someone like me, who never had an inkling to go to B-school, now gets the idea that branding is important. Why? Because every task seems to revolve around brand identity and marketing.
3. The shilling is irritating. And this is why we have these marketing tasks - there's a sponsor to plug. Whether it's going to Best Buy to get gadgets or taking the kids to see the surprisingly difficult-to-pronounce Zathura, the tasks are less about finding business leaders than it is an informerical interspersed with people yelling at each other. Yeah, that's going to get me to part with my cash.
4. The hype is, well, typical. NBC has a long and dark history of over-hyping episodes, and every time we hear about an UNBELIEVABLE and UNPRECEDENTED boardroom where DONALD WILL BE QUESTIONED and SOMETHING THAT NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE HAPPENS, we get deflated when we see what actually happened - something that can never live up to the hyperbole.
5. The rewards are stupid. You made a great parade float - go cut a song with Wyclef Jean. Huh?
6. The duplication is overkill. A spin-off with Martha was actually a good idea. Running it at the same time as the original wasn't. And spending more than five minutes on a catch-phrase wouldn't have hurt, either.
So how do we fix this?
1. Fewer contestants. Cut it back to 14, and either don't take some of the marginal folks or save them for the next installment. If we get to know the players sooner, we're more likely to stay interested.
2. Mix up the tasks. The first season had some different tasks - negotiate for deals, sell water, etc. Do more things like that. And while you're at it, maybe scrap the team set up for the first couple of weeks. Throw in some individual challenges, let us see how the contestants work on their own and not when they're trying to manage people who spend the whole task planning a boardroom strategy.
3. More TV show, less product placement. There's already advertising during the show. Let's stop having the product placement followed by the ads followed by the Yahoo! tie-in. People are hip to this and it'd be refreshing to see a move away from it.
4. Tone down the hype. If NBC won't let you, move. Seriously, find someone who can promote a show without running it into the ground.
5. Scrap the rewards. They bring nothing to the show. Spend that time with more task footage - it's so heavily edited to being with (given how much time they have to cover) that a couple more minutes may not add much. But it couldn't hurt.
6. Alternate Donald with another host, and rotate that host. You keep Donald fresh, don't have another host who may challenge him in stature, and you get to mix things up based on the new host's area of expertise.
The one thing I would not change - Carolyn and George. In fact, give them the time saved by cutting the rewards.
Just as he predicted he could take the USFL into the fall and run profitable casinos in Atlantic City, I'm sure.
My theory is a little different. I think the ratings are down because The Apprentice is formulaic and boring. The problems?
1. There are too many contestants. It takes a good three weeks to get the names down, and even then some of those names belong to the crazies who get fired early. We're six weeks in and I still can't tell most of the guys apart.
2. The tasks are repetitive. Even someone like me, who never had an inkling to go to B-school, now gets the idea that branding is important. Why? Because every task seems to revolve around brand identity and marketing.
3. The shilling is irritating. And this is why we have these marketing tasks - there's a sponsor to plug. Whether it's going to Best Buy to get gadgets or taking the kids to see the surprisingly difficult-to-pronounce Zathura, the tasks are less about finding business leaders than it is an informerical interspersed with people yelling at each other. Yeah, that's going to get me to part with my cash.
4. The hype is, well, typical. NBC has a long and dark history of over-hyping episodes, and every time we hear about an UNBELIEVABLE and UNPRECEDENTED boardroom where DONALD WILL BE QUESTIONED and SOMETHING THAT NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE HAPPENS, we get deflated when we see what actually happened - something that can never live up to the hyperbole.
5. The rewards are stupid. You made a great parade float - go cut a song with Wyclef Jean. Huh?
6. The duplication is overkill. A spin-off with Martha was actually a good idea. Running it at the same time as the original wasn't. And spending more than five minutes on a catch-phrase wouldn't have hurt, either.
So how do we fix this?
1. Fewer contestants. Cut it back to 14, and either don't take some of the marginal folks or save them for the next installment. If we get to know the players sooner, we're more likely to stay interested.
2. Mix up the tasks. The first season had some different tasks - negotiate for deals, sell water, etc. Do more things like that. And while you're at it, maybe scrap the team set up for the first couple of weeks. Throw in some individual challenges, let us see how the contestants work on their own and not when they're trying to manage people who spend the whole task planning a boardroom strategy.
3. More TV show, less product placement. There's already advertising during the show. Let's stop having the product placement followed by the ads followed by the Yahoo! tie-in. People are hip to this and it'd be refreshing to see a move away from it.
4. Tone down the hype. If NBC won't let you, move. Seriously, find someone who can promote a show without running it into the ground.
5. Scrap the rewards. They bring nothing to the show. Spend that time with more task footage - it's so heavily edited to being with (given how much time they have to cover) that a couple more minutes may not add much. But it couldn't hurt.
6. Alternate Donald with another host, and rotate that host. You keep Donald fresh, don't have another host who may challenge him in stature, and you get to mix things up based on the new host's area of expertise.
The one thing I would not change - Carolyn and George. In fact, give them the time saved by cutting the rewards.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Saturday Night Lame
Is last night's SNL par for the course for this season? I watched the opening skit, the monologue, the fake ad, and the first skit. None of them were all that good.
First off, I can't even remember the opening skit. Considering that's supposed to set up the show, nice job there. Catherine Zeta-Jones' monologue was OK, mostly her tap dancing while singing how regardless of her performance, no one can take her Oscar away. But in the middle of it she makes an off-hand reference to dropping the F-bomb, which is a little unseemly given the recent death of Charles Rocket.
Then there's an ad about bum cancer or something which is mostly an excuse for the actors to talk like fourth graders, but with a straight face. The first skit, where Zeta-Jones plays a CNN reporter whose appearance degrades over time while covering a disaster in Afghanistan (and then, somehow, Hurricane Wilma), was incredbily pointless.
I packed it in at that point. I'm told it didn't get any better. Why does a reprise of Saturday Night's Main Event sound like a good idea?
First off, I can't even remember the opening skit. Considering that's supposed to set up the show, nice job there. Catherine Zeta-Jones' monologue was OK, mostly her tap dancing while singing how regardless of her performance, no one can take her Oscar away. But in the middle of it she makes an off-hand reference to dropping the F-bomb, which is a little unseemly given the recent death of Charles Rocket.
Then there's an ad about bum cancer or something which is mostly an excuse for the actors to talk like fourth graders, but with a straight face. The first skit, where Zeta-Jones plays a CNN reporter whose appearance degrades over time while covering a disaster in Afghanistan (and then, somehow, Hurricane Wilma), was incredbily pointless.
I packed it in at that point. I'm told it didn't get any better. Why does a reprise of Saturday Night's Main Event sound like a good idea?
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Type A-gonizing
In what might be the most useless casting of the new season, Joely Fisher is playing Lynette's boss on Desperate Housewives. Given that all the character does is go on about how kids can't come before work and show off her boobs, they probably could have gotten by with someone less famous.
I assume there'll be more to this character later, but considering at this point I don't even think she has a name (IMDB lists her as "Lynette's Boss"; if she has a name, it's used infrequently enough that I can't think of it), I'm not feeling positive.
Adding to this is the likely absence of Felicia, the sister of Martha Huber played winningly by Harriet Sansom Harris. She had about 15 seconds of exposition last week saying she was going back to Utah for awhile (and foreshadowing the return of Paul Young at some point). I'll miss her straight talk and baked goods.
I assume there'll be more to this character later, but considering at this point I don't even think she has a name (IMDB lists her as "Lynette's Boss"; if she has a name, it's used infrequently enough that I can't think of it), I'm not feeling positive.
Adding to this is the likely absence of Felicia, the sister of Martha Huber played winningly by Harriet Sansom Harris. She had about 15 seconds of exposition last week saying she was going back to Utah for awhile (and foreshadowing the return of Paul Young at some point). I'll miss her straight talk and baked goods.
Friday, October 14, 2005
An up and coming business whackjob
Sadly, viewers of The Apprentice had to bid adieu last night to Toral, whose potential for becoming the new Omarosa was just beginning to be achieved. Seriously, I don't think I can quantify the level of narcissism and ego she presented. Simply put, none of us is equal to the task of wiping her ass.
If you don't watch the show, and you'd like an idea of what I'm talking about, a fairly simple Google search should get you to her official website, which is as sad a cry for lingering fame-whoredom as you can get. My favorite part is the link for a book that is "coming soon." One hopes it will explain which Eastern religion forbids its practicioners from wearing mascot costumes (as she claimed last night when asked to wear such a costume as part of a task).
While I don't watch the show hoping for a "new" Omarosa, and didn't care for how long she lasted (and thus how long NBC could over-hype her), I'd have liked at least a couple more weeks of Toral's full-on crazy. If nothing else, it infuriated the core group of her team (known variously as the Heathers or Blonde Mafia or Coven). It'll be fun watching this group turn on itself.
If you don't watch the show, and you'd like an idea of what I'm talking about, a fairly simple Google search should get you to her official website, which is as sad a cry for lingering fame-whoredom as you can get. My favorite part is the link for a book that is "coming soon." One hopes it will explain which Eastern religion forbids its practicioners from wearing mascot costumes (as she claimed last night when asked to wear such a costume as part of a task).
While I don't watch the show hoping for a "new" Omarosa, and didn't care for how long she lasted (and thus how long NBC could over-hype her), I'd have liked at least a couple more weeks of Toral's full-on crazy. If nothing else, it infuriated the core group of her team (known variously as the Heathers or Blonde Mafia or Coven). It'll be fun watching this group turn on itself.
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