What's Cancelled? The only relatively new cancellations are The Mindy Project (which was announced last week, with the potential that Hulu may pick it up) and The Following.
The New Lineup:
Monday: Gotham opens the night, followed by Minority Report, a TV version of the movie where one of the precogs has secretly returned to fighting crime, aided by a cop with a troubled past. They're once again trying to prevent crimes before they happen, so sort of a Person of Interest without the computer. I would have more faith in this if Fox had a better track record with shows set in the future.
Monday will also see the return of The X-Files in January.
Tuesday: is all new, and opens with a pair of sitcoms. Grandfathered stars John Stamos as a bachelor who learns that he's not only a father, but a grandfather. He then has to balance his new family with his work family, and work out the love lives of his son and himself. This is followed by The Grinder, in which a TV lawyer (Rob Lowe), finding his show cancelled, moves home to work in his family's law firm, to the consternation of his brother (Fred Savage) and father (William Devane). I find the latter show more interesting than the former.
The following hour gives us Scream Queens, Ryan Murphy's follow-up to Glee. An elite sorority is forced to open its pledge process to all students, which apparently causes a killing spree. We'll get another body each week until the killer is found, or something. I'm dubious about this one, if only because of how Glee wandered for most of its run.
New Girl returns later in the year, followed by a new comedy, The Guide to Surviving Life. The new show follows a group of young people who are living together for the first time. Probably a good match for New Girl and for viewers who don't remember Friends.
Wednesday: Opens with Rosewood, in which a brilliant private pathologist (Morris Chestnut) uses his sophisticated lab and skilled assistants (his sister and her fiancee) to find clues that the Miami PD missed. Which leads me to wonder why the Miami PD doesn't just have him do their autopsies to begin with. And there's a detective with her own inner demons for him to clash with, of course.
This is followed by Empire, which doesn't seem like the most natural combination.
Thursday: Bones, followed by Sleepy Hollow in a new time slot.
Friday: Masterchef Junior, follwed by the clip show World's Funniest.
Saturday: college football
Sunday: unchanged, notable in that midseason comedy The Last Man on Earth will return in the 9:30 slot after Family Guy.
Midseason?
*Lucifer, based on a comic book where the fallen angel moves to Los Angeles to punish bad guys, although living in LA means he's not keeping the peace in Hell, which may allow evil beings to escape (from a hellmouth?). Seems very Buffy/Angelish.
* The Frankenstein Code, where a septugenarian sheriff is killed by mobsters but brought back to life by a couple of thirtysomething techies, with some unpredictable superpowers thrown in to boot. I assume the reanimated lawman is not afraid of fire?
* Bordertown, an animated comedy from Seth MacFarlane set in a town on the US-Mexico border. Which I assume will allow him to use all of the jokes left over from The Cleveland Show, only edited to be about Mexicans.
We're also getting a live version of Grease, as Fox horns in on NBC's territory. And, as noted pretty much everywhere, American Idol will return for its final season.
Thoughts?
Seems like Fox is betting heavily on sci-fi/fantasy themed programming, which hasn't quite worked out for them in the past. But if they can embrace it, and give shows time to develop, it could work out very well for them. And while there may be derivative notes in some of the new shows, they are at least for older shows that may not be as familiar to current 18 to 34 year olds; it's new to them!
Showing posts with label upfronts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label upfronts. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Monday, May 11, 2015
2015 Upfronts: NBC
It's the most wonderful time of the TV year: the broadcast networks trout out their planned schedules for the upcoming season, in the hopes of selling as much ad time as possible. NBC and Fox go today, ABC tomorrow, CBS Wednesday, and The CW on Thursday. Let's start with the Peacock.
What's Cancelled? Nothing surprising, really, and mostly things that have already been cancelled. Most notable shows not coming back include Parks and Rec, Parenthood (both planned endings), State of Affairs, The Sing-Off, Allegiance, and Constantine.
The New Lineup. Here's what's on tap for the fall:
Monday: The Voice for two hours, with Blindspot moving in at 10. This new drama sees a woman wake up in Times Square not knowing who she is or how she got there. She's also only covered by a set of intricate tattoos, one of which is the name of a FBI agent. Working together, they realize that her tats are related to crimes, and that solving them will help the woman get back her identity and apparently expose some sort of international conspiracy. If it's done well it might not be bad, but I'm sensing this as every international conspiracy show of the last decade with a Blacklist overlay.
Tuesday: begins with The Voice, and then moves to new drama Heartbreaker, about a heart surgeon whose professional brilliance in a male-dominated field may only be matched by a "racy" personal life. This is the latest attempt to find a Grey's Anatomy for a younger set, I'm guessing.
The day wraps with what might be the most interesting new show of the year, Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris. It's a return to the variety show, promising music, comedy, stunts, audience participation, and various giveaways. I'll admit to being intrigued.
Wednesday: No changes here, with The Mysteries of Laura (so much for a repeat win in the Ted Marshall Open) followed by Law & Order: SVU and then Chicago PD.
Thursday: Starts with the reboot of Heroes, which still seems like a bad idea. That's followed by The Blacklist, and then The Player, which stars Wesley Snipes as a special ops guy turned Las Vegas security pro who is tasked to stop major crimes by a shadowy group of millionaires. This may also help Snipes finally learn the truth about the death of his wife, because working for a shadowy group of millionaires to stop major crimes isn't enough. I just hope Snipes gets his withholding correct this time around.
Friday: The one relocated show is Undateable, which kicks off the evening, followed by People are Talking, in which to diverse couples who live next door to each other talk about life, love and... sorry, I fell asleep in the middle of the synopsis. Marc-Paul Gosselaar stars, for those of you still upset about Saved by the Bell not getting the reboot treatment.
Grimm and Dateline round out the evening.
Saturday: Dateline followed by vintage SNL repeats.
Sunday: Football scores, followed by football game.
Midseason?
Chicago Fire comes back in November in place of NPH's show, and there are a variety of unscripted programs (Celebrity Apprentice, The Biggest Loser, etc.) that aren't on the schedule but will likely fill some cracks. As far as new scripted shows go, we have:
* The reboot of Coach, where Hayden Fox comes out of retirement to help his son, who is the head football coach at an Ivy League school where the eggheads don't know sports.
* Hot & Bothered, a sitcom set behind the scenes of a telenovela. Eva Longoria stars.
* Crowded, about empty nesters who suddenly have children and parents living with them. The description calls this setting "timely," which is probably true if we're measuring in geologic time.
* Superstore, a big box workplace comedy starring America Ferrara and Ben Feldman. This is closer to timely, NBC, especially if the leads started working their after losing their jobs in the Great Recession.
* You, Me and the End of the World, an apocalyptic comedy about a group of misfits whose lives intersect in the shadow of an impending collision between the Earth and a comet. Stars Rob Lowe, Jenna Fischer and Megan Mullaly.
*Chicago Med, another Chicago Fire spinoff. Looking forward to next year's Chicago Sanitation.
* Game of Silence, which strikes me as Revenge combined with I Know What you Did Last Summer, when a secret shared by a group of high school friends comes to light 25 years later.
* Shades of Blue, about a crooked cop (Jennifer Lopez!) who has to turn on her fellow crooked cops when she gets pinched by the FBI.
Also, we're getting a live version of The Wiz this season.
Thoughts?
First thought is that after years of giving NBC crap about turnover, they've done a nice job of developing some shows with staying power. Quick second thought is that they've only got one hour of traditional sitcoms for the fall, and it's on Friday. Must See Thursday is well and truly dead.
There's not much among the new shows that really piques my interest, other than the variety show, and that's less about content than format. But I also think the new shows are OK, not so derivative to be obvious about who they're ripping off but not so original to potentially be off-putting (though People are Talking sounds dreadful). So good work, I guess?
What's Cancelled? Nothing surprising, really, and mostly things that have already been cancelled. Most notable shows not coming back include Parks and Rec, Parenthood (both planned endings), State of Affairs, The Sing-Off, Allegiance, and Constantine.
The New Lineup. Here's what's on tap for the fall:
Monday: The Voice for two hours, with Blindspot moving in at 10. This new drama sees a woman wake up in Times Square not knowing who she is or how she got there. She's also only covered by a set of intricate tattoos, one of which is the name of a FBI agent. Working together, they realize that her tats are related to crimes, and that solving them will help the woman get back her identity and apparently expose some sort of international conspiracy. If it's done well it might not be bad, but I'm sensing this as every international conspiracy show of the last decade with a Blacklist overlay.
Tuesday: begins with The Voice, and then moves to new drama Heartbreaker, about a heart surgeon whose professional brilliance in a male-dominated field may only be matched by a "racy" personal life. This is the latest attempt to find a Grey's Anatomy for a younger set, I'm guessing.
The day wraps with what might be the most interesting new show of the year, Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris. It's a return to the variety show, promising music, comedy, stunts, audience participation, and various giveaways. I'll admit to being intrigued.
Wednesday: No changes here, with The Mysteries of Laura (so much for a repeat win in the Ted Marshall Open) followed by Law & Order: SVU and then Chicago PD.
Thursday: Starts with the reboot of Heroes, which still seems like a bad idea. That's followed by The Blacklist, and then The Player, which stars Wesley Snipes as a special ops guy turned Las Vegas security pro who is tasked to stop major crimes by a shadowy group of millionaires. This may also help Snipes finally learn the truth about the death of his wife, because working for a shadowy group of millionaires to stop major crimes isn't enough. I just hope Snipes gets his withholding correct this time around.
Friday: The one relocated show is Undateable, which kicks off the evening, followed by People are Talking, in which to diverse couples who live next door to each other talk about life, love and... sorry, I fell asleep in the middle of the synopsis. Marc-Paul Gosselaar stars, for those of you still upset about Saved by the Bell not getting the reboot treatment.
Grimm and Dateline round out the evening.
Saturday: Dateline followed by vintage SNL repeats.
Sunday: Football scores, followed by football game.
Midseason?
Chicago Fire comes back in November in place of NPH's show, and there are a variety of unscripted programs (Celebrity Apprentice, The Biggest Loser, etc.) that aren't on the schedule but will likely fill some cracks. As far as new scripted shows go, we have:
* The reboot of Coach, where Hayden Fox comes out of retirement to help his son, who is the head football coach at an Ivy League school where the eggheads don't know sports.
* Hot & Bothered, a sitcom set behind the scenes of a telenovela. Eva Longoria stars.
* Crowded, about empty nesters who suddenly have children and parents living with them. The description calls this setting "timely," which is probably true if we're measuring in geologic time.
* Superstore, a big box workplace comedy starring America Ferrara and Ben Feldman. This is closer to timely, NBC, especially if the leads started working their after losing their jobs in the Great Recession.
* You, Me and the End of the World, an apocalyptic comedy about a group of misfits whose lives intersect in the shadow of an impending collision between the Earth and a comet. Stars Rob Lowe, Jenna Fischer and Megan Mullaly.
*Chicago Med, another Chicago Fire spinoff. Looking forward to next year's Chicago Sanitation.
* Game of Silence, which strikes me as Revenge combined with I Know What you Did Last Summer, when a secret shared by a group of high school friends comes to light 25 years later.
* Shades of Blue, about a crooked cop (Jennifer Lopez!) who has to turn on her fellow crooked cops when she gets pinched by the FBI.
Also, we're getting a live version of The Wiz this season.
Thoughts?
First thought is that after years of giving NBC crap about turnover, they've done a nice job of developing some shows with staying power. Quick second thought is that they've only got one hour of traditional sitcoms for the fall, and it's on Friday. Must See Thursday is well and truly dead.
There's not much among the new shows that really piques my interest, other than the variety show, and that's less about content than format. But I also think the new shows are OK, not so derivative to be obvious about who they're ripping off but not so original to potentially be off-putting (though People are Talking sounds dreadful). So good work, I guess?
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Upfronts 2014; The CW
And to end the week, The CW and its fare for teens and tweens.
What's Cancelled? The most notable cancellation was for The Carrie Diaries, though not unexpected. Also cut was The Tomorrow People, which I think punches the netlet's ticket for trying to adapt a British series and failing.
Starting this Fall
Monday - Starts off with the relocated vampire spin-off The Originals and is followed by new show Jane the Virgin, in which a Hispanic woman who is saving herself for marriage is accidentally inseminated during a doctor's visit and is now carrying the baby of the "reformed playboy" who owns the hotel where Jane works. This sounds like a slightly edgy Lifetime movie more than an actual series. I'm also not sure how these two shows go together.
Tuesday - The Flash fulfills the show based on a comic book quota that's in place this year. With this and Arrow in place, you get the sense that the CW may be to DC what ABC has become for Marvel. This is followed by Supernatural.
Wednesday - Arrow leads into The 100. And while it may be a little on the nose, would it be better to have the two comic book shows on the same night and The 100 paired with Supernatural?
Thursday - The Vampire Diaries lead into Reign. OK, new plan, pair Reign with The 100 for a night about past and future Earth.
Friday - A new and encore episode of Whose Line is it Anyway?leads into yet another season of America's Next Top Model. J Alexander returns, which may be the only reason to tune in.
Saturday and Sunday - local programming, which is still the best idea the network ever had.
And then at midseason
Hart of Dixie returns - maybe she's the one who accidentally knocked up Jane? - as does Beauty and the Beast, and two new shows are available:
iZombie is also based on a comic book, in which a teenage girl tries to balance a normal life with being a zombie. She's passing as human (calling her undead look goth) and has a job with access to fresh brains (coroner's office). Now if she can just find a date for prom!
The Messengers- some sort of pulse knocks out a group of people, who awaken with superpowers and some sort of mystical connection to each other. This may also be the start of the events in Revelation that lead to the Rapture. Somehow, Tim Kring is not involved.
Outlook
The CW is gonna CW. As much as the network talks about being inclusive of more viewers, this is still a lineup that skews young, if not so obviously female anymore. It's a good thing they have a solid lineup of returning shows, as anything that isn't The Flash sounds a little dodgy.
What's Cancelled? The most notable cancellation was for The Carrie Diaries, though not unexpected. Also cut was The Tomorrow People, which I think punches the netlet's ticket for trying to adapt a British series and failing.
Starting this Fall
Monday - Starts off with the relocated vampire spin-off The Originals and is followed by new show Jane the Virgin, in which a Hispanic woman who is saving herself for marriage is accidentally inseminated during a doctor's visit and is now carrying the baby of the "reformed playboy" who owns the hotel where Jane works. This sounds like a slightly edgy Lifetime movie more than an actual series. I'm also not sure how these two shows go together.
Tuesday - The Flash fulfills the show based on a comic book quota that's in place this year. With this and Arrow in place, you get the sense that the CW may be to DC what ABC has become for Marvel. This is followed by Supernatural.
Wednesday - Arrow leads into The 100. And while it may be a little on the nose, would it be better to have the two comic book shows on the same night and The 100 paired with Supernatural?
Thursday - The Vampire Diaries lead into Reign. OK, new plan, pair Reign with The 100 for a night about past and future Earth.
Friday - A new and encore episode of Whose Line is it Anyway?leads into yet another season of America's Next Top Model. J Alexander returns, which may be the only reason to tune in.
Saturday and Sunday - local programming, which is still the best idea the network ever had.
And then at midseason
Hart of Dixie returns - maybe she's the one who accidentally knocked up Jane? - as does Beauty and the Beast, and two new shows are available:
iZombie is also based on a comic book, in which a teenage girl tries to balance a normal life with being a zombie. She's passing as human (calling her undead look goth) and has a job with access to fresh brains (coroner's office). Now if she can just find a date for prom!
The Messengers- some sort of pulse knocks out a group of people, who awaken with superpowers and some sort of mystical connection to each other. This may also be the start of the events in Revelation that lead to the Rapture. Somehow, Tim Kring is not involved.
Outlook
The CW is gonna CW. As much as the network talks about being inclusive of more viewers, this is still a lineup that skews young, if not so obviously female anymore. It's a good thing they have a solid lineup of returning shows, as anything that isn't The Flash sounds a little dodgy.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
2014 Upfronts: CBS
As we've gotten used to, a fairly stable fall offering for CBS, but with one major addition that should shake things up.
What's Cancelled?
The only show that got axed that wasn't clear a while ago was The Crazy Ones. Which is kind of too bad, thought it was OK from what I saw of it.
Starting this Fall
Monday- big news here is that The Big Bang Theory will (temporarily) kick off the night before moving back to Thursday at the end of October. At that point 2 Broke Girls returns. Mom moves to 8:30, and at 9 we have Scorpion, about a group of genius misfits who help solve crimes using their massive brains. But because they suck at real life the mom of a gifted boy helps them cope with feelings and other icky stuff. This is apparently "inspired by a true story," curious as to how far the true story deviates from the show.
The night ends with a relocated NCIS: Los Angeles.
Tuesday - NCIS leads into the new NCIS: New Orleans. I assume I can skip the plot description. The evening ends with Person of Interest, so a nice night of people getting shot at.
Wednesday - Survivor leads into Criminal Minds which leads into a new drama, Stalker, which follows a unit of the LAPD that investigates... stalkers. Just in case one hour a week of Law & Order: SVU wasn't enough for you.
Thursday - FOOTBALL. CBS now has a slate of Thursday night games, which will also air on the NFL Network. It's not quite the deal that NBC has where they can flex games into the night (not surprisingly, given that it's a different day and during the first eight weeks of the season), but given the apparently limitless appetite for the NFL this should give CBS a huge boost early in the fall.
Once football is over, The Big Bang Theory moves back to kick off the night, followed by The Millers, Two and a Half Men, The McCarthys, and Elementary. The McCarthys tells the story about a "loud and sports-crazed" Boston family where the one unathletic son is tabbed by his dad to be his assistant basketball coach. The son, who is gay, just wants to move away and find a partner, but feels compelled to take the job. News flash: not everyone who lives in Boston is Irish. Also, the son could just as easily stay in the city, find a guy, and get married while also being a basketball coach. Ugh.
Friday - the final big move is that The Amazing Race will move here from its long-held Sunday slot. I really don't like this, but do at least appreciate that my DVR won't cut it off due to football or NCAA basketball overruns. Hawaii 5-0 and Blue Bloods return.
Saturday - Crimetime Saturday and 48 Hours, which at least gives us a break from reruns and sports.
Sunday - 60 Minutes leads into the new show Madame Secretary, where Tea Leoni plays the new Secretary of State, who, in a shocking turn of events, has to balance her work and home life. This is followed by The Good Wife and CSI. At some point CSI will give way to CSI: Cyber, about a group that investigates crime that is planned/starts/somehow involves the Internet. Patricia Arquette is the only cast member I've seen mentioned, so I kind of hope this is just an hour of her sitting in front of her computer. Gripping!
And then at midseason
At some point Mike & Molly, The Mentalist, and Undercover Boss will all return. There are two new shows as well:
Battle Creek features mismatched cops, played by Josh Duhamel and Dean Winters, fighting crime in the titular Michigan city. Duhamel is apparently an FBI agent who takes on Winter as his partner, which makes me wonder how a city cop can just become an FBI agent, but I'm thinking too much about this.
The Odd Couple is the latest reboot of the quintessential TV show about mismatched guys. Matthew Perry stars as Oscar, which is funny as I think of him as a Felix.
Outlook
The rich get richer, as even if the new fall shows tank the presence of football will keep ratings up, and the return of so many known shows in the spring should keep CBS at or near the top.
What's Cancelled?
The only show that got axed that wasn't clear a while ago was The Crazy Ones. Which is kind of too bad, thought it was OK from what I saw of it.
Starting this Fall
Monday- big news here is that The Big Bang Theory will (temporarily) kick off the night before moving back to Thursday at the end of October. At that point 2 Broke Girls returns. Mom moves to 8:30, and at 9 we have Scorpion, about a group of genius misfits who help solve crimes using their massive brains. But because they suck at real life the mom of a gifted boy helps them cope with feelings and other icky stuff. This is apparently "inspired by a true story," curious as to how far the true story deviates from the show.
The night ends with a relocated NCIS: Los Angeles.
Tuesday - NCIS leads into the new NCIS: New Orleans. I assume I can skip the plot description. The evening ends with Person of Interest, so a nice night of people getting shot at.
Wednesday - Survivor leads into Criminal Minds which leads into a new drama, Stalker, which follows a unit of the LAPD that investigates... stalkers. Just in case one hour a week of Law & Order: SVU wasn't enough for you.
Thursday - FOOTBALL. CBS now has a slate of Thursday night games, which will also air on the NFL Network. It's not quite the deal that NBC has where they can flex games into the night (not surprisingly, given that it's a different day and during the first eight weeks of the season), but given the apparently limitless appetite for the NFL this should give CBS a huge boost early in the fall.
Once football is over, The Big Bang Theory moves back to kick off the night, followed by The Millers, Two and a Half Men, The McCarthys, and Elementary. The McCarthys tells the story about a "loud and sports-crazed" Boston family where the one unathletic son is tabbed by his dad to be his assistant basketball coach. The son, who is gay, just wants to move away and find a partner, but feels compelled to take the job. News flash: not everyone who lives in Boston is Irish. Also, the son could just as easily stay in the city, find a guy, and get married while also being a basketball coach. Ugh.
Friday - the final big move is that The Amazing Race will move here from its long-held Sunday slot. I really don't like this, but do at least appreciate that my DVR won't cut it off due to football or NCAA basketball overruns. Hawaii 5-0 and Blue Bloods return.
Saturday - Crimetime Saturday and 48 Hours, which at least gives us a break from reruns and sports.
Sunday - 60 Minutes leads into the new show Madame Secretary, where Tea Leoni plays the new Secretary of State, who, in a shocking turn of events, has to balance her work and home life. This is followed by The Good Wife and CSI. At some point CSI will give way to CSI: Cyber, about a group that investigates crime that is planned/starts/somehow involves the Internet. Patricia Arquette is the only cast member I've seen mentioned, so I kind of hope this is just an hour of her sitting in front of her computer. Gripping!
And then at midseason
At some point Mike & Molly, The Mentalist, and Undercover Boss will all return. There are two new shows as well:
Battle Creek features mismatched cops, played by Josh Duhamel and Dean Winters, fighting crime in the titular Michigan city. Duhamel is apparently an FBI agent who takes on Winter as his partner, which makes me wonder how a city cop can just become an FBI agent, but I'm thinking too much about this.
The Odd Couple is the latest reboot of the quintessential TV show about mismatched guys. Matthew Perry stars as Oscar, which is funny as I think of him as a Felix.
Outlook
The rich get richer, as even if the new fall shows tank the presence of football will keep ratings up, and the return of so many known shows in the spring should keep CBS at or near the top.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Upfronts 2014: ABC
If nothing else, ABC's quick hook makes for fun upfront recaps. So here we go again!
What's Cancelled?Everything. OK, maybe not everything but a lot of things. Trophy Wife, Super Fun Night, Suburgatory, and The Neighborsall got the axe, as did anything that was mid-season that's not Resurrection.
Starting this Fall
Monday - Dancing With the Stars leading into Castle. Easily their strongest night of the week.
Tuesday - Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. moves back and hour to open up the first hour for two new sitoms. The first is Selfie, which by name alone makes me hope it gets cancelled during its first episode. It's about a woman who is Internet famous and realizes she'd rather be an actual person, and hires a guy to help her. It's apparently based on My Fair Lady, and as much as one may like Karen Gillian and John Cho, they aren't exactly Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison.
That leads to Manhattan Love Story, about the start of a relationship where we can apparently hear the couple's thoughts. I think. Can't say I care.
The night closes with Forever, the story of an immortal medical examiner who uses his current cases to try to discover why he hasn't died. We're apparently not done with TV shows about people who can't die.
Wednesday - mostly returning shows (The Middle, The Goldbergs, Modern Family, and Nashville), with the new sitcom Black-ish at 9:30. It's about an African-American family whose dad (Anthony Anderson) is concerned that he's assimilated too much. Helping him address this is his father (Laurence Fishburne). Worried about the potential for devolving into cliche, but given who is involved there's hope.
Thursday - Grey's Anatomy moves to 8 - too early! - and is followed by Scandal and the new drama How to Get Away with Murder. The latest from Shonda Rhimes, it's about a law professor (Viola Davis) who gets involved with four of her students in applying what they learn in class to real life cases. Kind of meh, though having Viola Davis around is promising.
Friday - Last Man Standing returns, leading into Cristela, about a woman whose six year law school career is finally leading to a big job. But at what cost to her ethnic identity? Not feeling it. Shark Tank and 20/20 finish the night.
Saturday - college football
Sunday - America's Funniest Home Videos, Once Upon a Time, Resurrection, and Revenge all return. A good night of shows that are still growing.
And then at midseason
OK, I'm not going to go through all of the shows. Most notable are:
American Crime - a killing with racial overtones begins to tear a town apart. Some notable names here (Felicity Huffman, Timothy Hutton), making this the show that will probably get the biggest push.
Galavant - a musical about a knight who loses his princess and is going to get her back. Just goofy enough to work? Alan Menken is involved, so the songs should be pretty good.
Marvel's Agent Carter - ABC's required new show based on a comic book, the former girlfriend of Captain America has to balance a reduction in work now that men are coming back from WWII, the occasional secret mission, and her newly single status. This will work well once something gets cancelled and they can put it after Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Secrets & Lies - a man (Ryan Phillipe) discovers a dead boy and is arrested for the killing. He has to prove his innocence while the investigator on the case (Juliette Lewis) starts to reveal the town's... secrets and lies. It's apparently based on Australian show, even if sounds like a neatened up version of Twin Peaks.
The Whispers - aliens have invaded, but are using children to unwittingly set things up for their final assault. I actually like this twist for what is a pretty hoary subject.
Outlook
Not sure some of the time slot moves are going to work - well, Grey'sat least - and there's enough high concept stuff here to be worried about midseason shows sticking around as well.
What's Cancelled?Everything. OK, maybe not everything but a lot of things. Trophy Wife, Super Fun Night, Suburgatory, and The Neighborsall got the axe, as did anything that was mid-season that's not Resurrection.
Starting this Fall
Monday - Dancing With the Stars leading into Castle. Easily their strongest night of the week.
Tuesday - Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. moves back and hour to open up the first hour for two new sitoms. The first is Selfie, which by name alone makes me hope it gets cancelled during its first episode. It's about a woman who is Internet famous and realizes she'd rather be an actual person, and hires a guy to help her. It's apparently based on My Fair Lady, and as much as one may like Karen Gillian and John Cho, they aren't exactly Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison.
That leads to Manhattan Love Story, about the start of a relationship where we can apparently hear the couple's thoughts. I think. Can't say I care.
The night closes with Forever, the story of an immortal medical examiner who uses his current cases to try to discover why he hasn't died. We're apparently not done with TV shows about people who can't die.
Wednesday - mostly returning shows (The Middle, The Goldbergs, Modern Family, and Nashville), with the new sitcom Black-ish at 9:30. It's about an African-American family whose dad (Anthony Anderson) is concerned that he's assimilated too much. Helping him address this is his father (Laurence Fishburne). Worried about the potential for devolving into cliche, but given who is involved there's hope.
Thursday - Grey's Anatomy moves to 8 - too early! - and is followed by Scandal and the new drama How to Get Away with Murder. The latest from Shonda Rhimes, it's about a law professor (Viola Davis) who gets involved with four of her students in applying what they learn in class to real life cases. Kind of meh, though having Viola Davis around is promising.
Friday - Last Man Standing returns, leading into Cristela, about a woman whose six year law school career is finally leading to a big job. But at what cost to her ethnic identity? Not feeling it. Shark Tank and 20/20 finish the night.
Saturday - college football
Sunday - America's Funniest Home Videos, Once Upon a Time, Resurrection, and Revenge all return. A good night of shows that are still growing.
And then at midseason
OK, I'm not going to go through all of the shows. Most notable are:
American Crime - a killing with racial overtones begins to tear a town apart. Some notable names here (Felicity Huffman, Timothy Hutton), making this the show that will probably get the biggest push.
Galavant - a musical about a knight who loses his princess and is going to get her back. Just goofy enough to work? Alan Menken is involved, so the songs should be pretty good.
Marvel's Agent Carter - ABC's required new show based on a comic book, the former girlfriend of Captain America has to balance a reduction in work now that men are coming back from WWII, the occasional secret mission, and her newly single status. This will work well once something gets cancelled and they can put it after Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Secrets & Lies - a man (Ryan Phillipe) discovers a dead boy and is arrested for the killing. He has to prove his innocence while the investigator on the case (Juliette Lewis) starts to reveal the town's... secrets and lies. It's apparently based on Australian show, even if sounds like a neatened up version of Twin Peaks.
The Whispers - aliens have invaded, but are using children to unwittingly set things up for their final assault. I actually like this twist for what is a pretty hoary subject.
Outlook
Not sure some of the time slot moves are going to work - well, Grey'sat least - and there's enough high concept stuff here to be worried about midseason shows sticking around as well.
Monday, May 12, 2014
Upfronts 2014: Fox
Fox also went today, and if NBC putting dramas before 10pm on Thursdays threw you, you may want to prepare for the new Fox Sunday.
What's Cancelled? Nothing surprising. Dads finally got the hook, as did mid-season comedies Enlisted and Surviving Jack. Almost Human got dropped a few weeks ago, everything else was known before that. And American Dad is moving to TBS.
Starting this fall
Monday - Sleepy Hollow returns (still kind of astounded that this caught on, but that's the risk you take when you snark on TV shows based on a PR blurb and nothing else), with the new show Gotham as its lead in. Gotham tells the story of the future police commissioner James Gordon, and his experiences fighting crime and corruption in a pre-Batman Gotham City. Hard to see this one failing, unless it pisses off the Batman fanboys in some way.
Tuesday - New Girl and The Mindy Project return, with new lead in Utopia, which takes 15 people and puts them in some isolated location to form their own society, and you can watch along both on the show and 24/7 online. I don't think I can quantify how disinterested I am in this show.
Wednesday - Hell's Kitchen leads into Red Band Society, about a group of kids who become friends while staying in the same pediatric ward. The narrator is in a coma. This can't be as depressing as I'm making it sound, can it? We should at least be happy Fox didn't pair this with Master Chef Junior.
Thursday - Bones returns for its 84th season, followed by Gracepoint, an American version of the British crime series Broadchurch. Kudos to Fox for getting David Tennant to star, but why not just seek out/Netflix the already excellent original series?
Friday - Master Chef Junior leads into more Utopia.
Saturday - sports
Sunday - Animation no longer dominates, as live action programming returns to Sunday night for the first time in forever. Brooklyn Nine-Nine moves in between The Simpsons and Family Guy, which is followed by Mulaney, a show about a stand-up comic who is trying to get his career going while also writing for an aging comedy legend played by Martin Short. Meh.
And then in midseason
We know American Idol will be back, as will The Following and Glee, which for the first (and last) time will start late. Several new show are also available:
Backstrom - Rainn Wilson stars as a darkly comic detective who returns to Portland's major crimes division after being transferred as punishment for his ways. I'd be less optimistic about something that reads like House for cops if it weren't for Wilson and the possibility of channeling that odd Dwight Schrute energy in a new direction.
Bordertown - the latest attempt to examine Anglo-Hispanic relations in a comedic setting. This one takes place in a town near the US-Mexico border, which I suppose is better than the "there goes the neighborhood" vibe of some past shows. Still not that interested.
Empire - this drama set against the backdrop of a music label and the jockeying by the sons of its founder has a lot of big names attached - Lee Daniels, Timbaland, Terrence Howard, among others - could be the most promising of the bunch.
Heiroglyph - set in ancient Egypt, a convicted thief is plucked from his cell to find out who stole an important scroll - but to do so he has to navigate all of the palace intrigue, etc. If nothing else the setting is original.
The Last Man on Earth - Will Forte is, literally, the last man on Earth. Watch him die of food poisoning in episode 4 when he eats some bad canned corn!
Whispering Pines- an FBI agent (Matt Dillon) is looking for a missing FBI agent (Carla Gugino) and after a car accident ("accident"?) wins up in the Whispering Pines hospital - from which he may never get out. A ton of big names (Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis, Terrence Howard again, among others), and there's a lot of promise here. It also looks like a limited 10 episode run, which will keep things from getting too drawn out.
Weird Loners - four romantically challenged strangers wind up living in the same building and get involved in each others' lives. Sounds a little New Girlish to me, with less adorkability.
Outlook
Questionable. Not a fan of most of the new fall shows, but there's enough there between returning shows and some of the mid-season shows for Fox to not backslide. I think.
What's Cancelled? Nothing surprising. Dads finally got the hook, as did mid-season comedies Enlisted and Surviving Jack. Almost Human got dropped a few weeks ago, everything else was known before that. And American Dad is moving to TBS.
Starting this fall
Monday - Sleepy Hollow returns (still kind of astounded that this caught on, but that's the risk you take when you snark on TV shows based on a PR blurb and nothing else), with the new show Gotham as its lead in. Gotham tells the story of the future police commissioner James Gordon, and his experiences fighting crime and corruption in a pre-Batman Gotham City. Hard to see this one failing, unless it pisses off the Batman fanboys in some way.
Tuesday - New Girl and The Mindy Project return, with new lead in Utopia, which takes 15 people and puts them in some isolated location to form their own society, and you can watch along both on the show and 24/7 online. I don't think I can quantify how disinterested I am in this show.
Wednesday - Hell's Kitchen leads into Red Band Society, about a group of kids who become friends while staying in the same pediatric ward. The narrator is in a coma. This can't be as depressing as I'm making it sound, can it? We should at least be happy Fox didn't pair this with Master Chef Junior.
Thursday - Bones returns for its 84th season, followed by Gracepoint, an American version of the British crime series Broadchurch. Kudos to Fox for getting David Tennant to star, but why not just seek out/Netflix the already excellent original series?
Friday - Master Chef Junior leads into more Utopia.
Saturday - sports
Sunday - Animation no longer dominates, as live action programming returns to Sunday night for the first time in forever. Brooklyn Nine-Nine moves in between The Simpsons and Family Guy, which is followed by Mulaney, a show about a stand-up comic who is trying to get his career going while also writing for an aging comedy legend played by Martin Short. Meh.
And then in midseason
We know American Idol will be back, as will The Following and Glee, which for the first (and last) time will start late. Several new show are also available:
Backstrom - Rainn Wilson stars as a darkly comic detective who returns to Portland's major crimes division after being transferred as punishment for his ways. I'd be less optimistic about something that reads like House for cops if it weren't for Wilson and the possibility of channeling that odd Dwight Schrute energy in a new direction.
Bordertown - the latest attempt to examine Anglo-Hispanic relations in a comedic setting. This one takes place in a town near the US-Mexico border, which I suppose is better than the "there goes the neighborhood" vibe of some past shows. Still not that interested.
Empire - this drama set against the backdrop of a music label and the jockeying by the sons of its founder has a lot of big names attached - Lee Daniels, Timbaland, Terrence Howard, among others - could be the most promising of the bunch.
Heiroglyph - set in ancient Egypt, a convicted thief is plucked from his cell to find out who stole an important scroll - but to do so he has to navigate all of the palace intrigue, etc. If nothing else the setting is original.
The Last Man on Earth - Will Forte is, literally, the last man on Earth. Watch him die of food poisoning in episode 4 when he eats some bad canned corn!
Whispering Pines- an FBI agent (Matt Dillon) is looking for a missing FBI agent (Carla Gugino) and after a car accident ("accident"?) wins up in the Whispering Pines hospital - from which he may never get out. A ton of big names (Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis, Terrence Howard again, among others), and there's a lot of promise here. It also looks like a limited 10 episode run, which will keep things from getting too drawn out.
Weird Loners - four romantically challenged strangers wind up living in the same building and get involved in each others' lives. Sounds a little New Girlish to me, with less adorkability.
Outlook
Questionable. Not a fan of most of the new fall shows, but there's enough there between returning shows and some of the mid-season shows for Fox to not backslide. I think.
Upfronts 2014: NBC
It's upfront week for the broadcast networks, as they tout next year's lineup in the hopes of selling all that precious ad time as soon as possible for as much money as possible. NBC, the doormat who managed to be the number 1 network at some point this season, got to go first.
What's Cancelled? In case you were off the Internet last week, the most notable cancellation for NBC is Community. And if you were off the Internet because electricity no longer works, you've been saved as NBC also axed Revolution.
Everything else that got whacked was either a mid-season replacement, a planned short run (Dracula), or had been cancelled a while ago.
Starting this Fall - here's your night-by-night schedule.
Monday - The Voice leads into The Blacklist. You should get used to seeing a lot of The Voice, as it will run twice during the season. The Blacklist will also get the post-Super Bowl slot.
Tuesday - The Voice results show, then a one-hour sitcom block, with Chicago Fire capping the night. The sitcom block has a new show, Marry Me, leading into the return of About a Boy, which seemed to disappear after its heavy promotion during the Olympics but apparently did enough to earn a second season.
Marry Me is about a couple who, botching their first attempt at an engagement (he planned to do it after a vacation, she slams him after they get back because she thought he'd pop the question on vacation), decide not to do it until everything is just right. Can't say I'm particularly interested, but it apparently involves a variety of people from Happy Endings, which enough people seemed to like that this may work.
Wednesday - A trio of dramas, as The Mysteries of Laura leads into Law & Order: SVU and Chicago PD. Laura is about a NYPD detective (Debra Messing) who is great at work but can't keep things together at home. Oh, and at some point her soon-to-be (maybe) husband winds up being her boss at some point. Ugh.
Thursday - The Biggest Loser and Parenthood bookend two new sitcoms that make me wonder if the cancellation of Community was premature. Bad Judge starts Kate Walsh as the titular bad judge, though the bad refers to her wild personal life (and occasional idiosyncracies behind the bench). Then some 8 year old kid shows up and may just be what causes her to settle down. So really, About Another Boy.
A to Z follows the wacky dating hijinx of a guy (Andrew) and a woman (Zelda) who meet thanks to an online dating error. He's a romantic! She's the practical one! Wacky! I would watch this only if Andrew, played by Mad Men's Ben Feldman, played the character as a modern day Ginzo.
Friday - Dateline, Grimm and Constantine, the latter based on the Hellblazer series by DC Comics. Get used to seeing comic book properties among new series, by the way.
Saturday - reruns
Sunday - football.
And then at mid-season
The big move is The Blacklist going from Monday at 10 to Thursday at 9, putting a stake right though the Thursday comedy block's heart. Taking its place on Monday is State of Affairs, which sees Katherine Heigl play a CIA analyst who puts together the president's daily intelligence briefing. She was also once engaged to the president's son. The president is played by Alfre Woodard, and I can only hope this thing gets retooled for her.
Replacing Parenthood at midseason is Allegiance, a broadcast network version of The Americans, but set in the present. Timely, I suppose, and the presence of Hope Davis is heartening. Maybe the best thing to happen here would be for this show to spur interest in the FX show.
There are several unscheduled shows, including returners like Parks and Rec and Hannibal (and the Heroes reboot, as much as no one seems to be looking forward to it). Among the new shows not yet scheduled:
Aquarius - David Duchovny stars as a 1960s cop investigating disappearances linked to a small-time cult led by a guy named Charles Manson.
Emerald City - a gritty reboot of Gone With the Wind, straight from the Once Upon a Time playbook.
Mission Control- a sitcom set in the 1960s about a female engineer trying to work within the boy's club that is NASA.
Mr. Robinson - musician turned substitute teacher uses music to inspire his students. It's the School of Rock adaptation we've never been waiting for! Craig Robinson stars, in case you were wondering how they came up with the name.
The Odyssey - the lives of three strangers collide with unexpected results. It's the Traffic adaptation we've never been waiting for! I'm not even going to try to explain it here, the synopsis made my head hurt.
One Big Happy - friends decide to start a family, but just as the woman discovers she's pregnant the guy announces he's married his recently-acquired girlfriend - who the female friend does not like. Another spin on Modern Family, though having Ellen Degeneres as an executive producer can't hurt.
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt - a woman recently freed from living in a cult for 15 years (played by Ellie Kemper) decides to stay in New York after a Today appearance and rents a room from a Broadway wannabe. I'd be less interested in this if it wasn't from Tina Fey. I'm actually a little surprised it didn't get on the fall schedule, but you can also see where this and Parks and Rec could make a nice hour once something gets cancelled.
Outlook
Not the worst that NBC has ever thrown at us. Still, I get the feeling that they're going to ride football and The Voice as hard as possible and just hope for the best with everything else.
What's Cancelled? In case you were off the Internet last week, the most notable cancellation for NBC is Community. And if you were off the Internet because electricity no longer works, you've been saved as NBC also axed Revolution.
Everything else that got whacked was either a mid-season replacement, a planned short run (Dracula), or had been cancelled a while ago.
Starting this Fall - here's your night-by-night schedule.
Monday - The Voice leads into The Blacklist. You should get used to seeing a lot of The Voice, as it will run twice during the season. The Blacklist will also get the post-Super Bowl slot.
Tuesday - The Voice results show, then a one-hour sitcom block, with Chicago Fire capping the night. The sitcom block has a new show, Marry Me, leading into the return of About a Boy, which seemed to disappear after its heavy promotion during the Olympics but apparently did enough to earn a second season.
Marry Me is about a couple who, botching their first attempt at an engagement (he planned to do it after a vacation, she slams him after they get back because she thought he'd pop the question on vacation), decide not to do it until everything is just right. Can't say I'm particularly interested, but it apparently involves a variety of people from Happy Endings, which enough people seemed to like that this may work.
Wednesday - A trio of dramas, as The Mysteries of Laura leads into Law & Order: SVU and Chicago PD. Laura is about a NYPD detective (Debra Messing) who is great at work but can't keep things together at home. Oh, and at some point her soon-to-be (maybe) husband winds up being her boss at some point. Ugh.
Thursday - The Biggest Loser and Parenthood bookend two new sitcoms that make me wonder if the cancellation of Community was premature. Bad Judge starts Kate Walsh as the titular bad judge, though the bad refers to her wild personal life (and occasional idiosyncracies behind the bench). Then some 8 year old kid shows up and may just be what causes her to settle down. So really, About Another Boy.
A to Z follows the wacky dating hijinx of a guy (Andrew) and a woman (Zelda) who meet thanks to an online dating error. He's a romantic! She's the practical one! Wacky! I would watch this only if Andrew, played by Mad Men's Ben Feldman, played the character as a modern day Ginzo.
Friday - Dateline, Grimm and Constantine, the latter based on the Hellblazer series by DC Comics. Get used to seeing comic book properties among new series, by the way.
Saturday - reruns
Sunday - football.
And then at mid-season
The big move is The Blacklist going from Monday at 10 to Thursday at 9, putting a stake right though the Thursday comedy block's heart. Taking its place on Monday is State of Affairs, which sees Katherine Heigl play a CIA analyst who puts together the president's daily intelligence briefing. She was also once engaged to the president's son. The president is played by Alfre Woodard, and I can only hope this thing gets retooled for her.
Replacing Parenthood at midseason is Allegiance, a broadcast network version of The Americans, but set in the present. Timely, I suppose, and the presence of Hope Davis is heartening. Maybe the best thing to happen here would be for this show to spur interest in the FX show.
There are several unscheduled shows, including returners like Parks and Rec and Hannibal (and the Heroes reboot, as much as no one seems to be looking forward to it). Among the new shows not yet scheduled:
Aquarius - David Duchovny stars as a 1960s cop investigating disappearances linked to a small-time cult led by a guy named Charles Manson.
Emerald City - a gritty reboot of Gone With the Wind, straight from the Once Upon a Time playbook.
Mission Control- a sitcom set in the 1960s about a female engineer trying to work within the boy's club that is NASA.
Mr. Robinson - musician turned substitute teacher uses music to inspire his students. It's the School of Rock adaptation we've never been waiting for! Craig Robinson stars, in case you were wondering how they came up with the name.
The Odyssey - the lives of three strangers collide with unexpected results. It's the Traffic adaptation we've never been waiting for! I'm not even going to try to explain it here, the synopsis made my head hurt.
One Big Happy - friends decide to start a family, but just as the woman discovers she's pregnant the guy announces he's married his recently-acquired girlfriend - who the female friend does not like. Another spin on Modern Family, though having Ellen Degeneres as an executive producer can't hurt.
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt - a woman recently freed from living in a cult for 15 years (played by Ellie Kemper) decides to stay in New York after a Today appearance and rents a room from a Broadway wannabe. I'd be less interested in this if it wasn't from Tina Fey. I'm actually a little surprised it didn't get on the fall schedule, but you can also see where this and Parks and Rec could make a nice hour once something gets cancelled.
Outlook
Not the worst that NBC has ever thrown at us. Still, I get the feeling that they're going to ride football and The Voice as hard as possible and just hope for the best with everything else.
Tuesday, June 04, 2013
Up Fronts, Rated
OK, I usually rank the up fronts right after they're done, but haven't felt compelled this year as no one blew me away with their excellence/crapulence. Still, might as well get it over with.
5. Fox. To be honest, I'm finding it hard to make distinct differences between everyone who isn't CBS. Fox has at least one show I'm interested in checking out (Brooklyn Nine Nine), but most of the new shows don't do much for me. They've also dedicated 1.5 nights a week to The X-Factor and American Idol, neither of which are doing the network any favors. More info on the return of 24 could have moved Fox out of the basement.
4. The CW. As with everything related to the netlet, this is kind of on the curve. I think their new shows (and programming in general) is aimed at the people they want, but that sort of focus doesn't really lead to growth.
3. ABC. They'd be lower if it wasn't for Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. And I'm not even a comic book fanboy. Also concerned that Monday might finally show signs of aging.
2. NBC. I'm a little surprised they're here, as I wasn't particularly overwhelmed with their new shows. Maybe I'm just sending them good vibes for renewing Community and Hannibal. And really, if I were to rewrite this a couple of hours from now I might have a completely different lineup here.
1. CBS. I'm not over the moon with their new shows, but the combination of known talent and strong returning shows puts them in the best position to succeed.
So there it is, for what it's worth.
5. Fox. To be honest, I'm finding it hard to make distinct differences between everyone who isn't CBS. Fox has at least one show I'm interested in checking out (Brooklyn Nine Nine), but most of the new shows don't do much for me. They've also dedicated 1.5 nights a week to The X-Factor and American Idol, neither of which are doing the network any favors. More info on the return of 24 could have moved Fox out of the basement.
4. The CW. As with everything related to the netlet, this is kind of on the curve. I think their new shows (and programming in general) is aimed at the people they want, but that sort of focus doesn't really lead to growth.
3. ABC. They'd be lower if it wasn't for Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. And I'm not even a comic book fanboy. Also concerned that Monday might finally show signs of aging.
2. NBC. I'm a little surprised they're here, as I wasn't particularly overwhelmed with their new shows. Maybe I'm just sending them good vibes for renewing Community and Hannibal. And really, if I were to rewrite this a couple of hours from now I might have a completely different lineup here.
1. CBS. I'm not over the moon with their new shows, but the combination of known talent and strong returning shows puts them in the best position to succeed.
So there it is, for what it's worth.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Upfronts; The CW
Last but not least (except for ratings) is The CW, which has become the traditional cap to network upfronts. Hey, whatever gets you out to JFK or Newark on time.
Who Stays? Who Goes?
No surprises here, as the notable cuts - 90210, Gossip Girl, Cult and Emily Owens M.D. were either expected to end or were dropped from the schedule early on. Supernatural is back for a ninth season - no word on it being a final season. Nikita, though, will be back at some point to wrap things up over six episodes.
What's Coming?
Monday - Hart of Dixie and Beauty and the Beast move to Monday, the younger female option to Dancing With the Stars and Castle on ABC.
Tuesday - Opens with The Originals, which follows the original vampire family as its patriarch tries to uncover a plot to destroy him that may involve other family members. It's a spin-off of Vampire Diaries, as you might imagine. It's followed by a relocated Supernatural.
Wednesday - Arrow stays here to open the night, followed by The Tomorrow People, an adaptation of a British show about genetically-advanced teens who develop powers like telekinesis, transportation, and so on. Sounds like a younger version of Heroes, but hopefully without the dopey and melodramatic opening voice overs.
Thursday - Starts with The Vampire Diaries and ends with Reign, which follows a teenaged Mary, Queen of Scots, as she travels with her ladies in waiting to France to see the prince she's been arranged to marry. I never quite thought of The CW as a home for period drama, but a little Tudors-lite bodice ripping may be a nice change of pace.
Friday - The Carrie Diaries move here and gets paired with America's Next Top Model. I'm less surprised by the pairing than the night, but looking at the numbers The Carrie Diaries never quite caught on, so Friday it is, though I'd imagine the target demo for the show will be at the mall (time to count the DVR viewers!).
No specific date is given for the 20th cycle of ANTM, but I'm seeing summer 2013 everywhere, so I'm assuming it'll run into the fall. Same judges, etc. as the last time, but the models will include men for the first time. It's a nice wrinkle, though I wonder if they should have interspersed regular and themed cycles to goose ratings and not create an expectation for themed cycles (this being the fourth one in a row).
Kicking around for mid-season are Star Crossed (a teen-centered aliens openly live on Earth drama that's reminiscent of Alien Nation and District 9), The 100 (a group of juvenile delinquents is sent from a space station to repopulate a nuclear disaster-ravaged Earth), and The CW's annual horrific attempt at a reality show, Famous in 12 (an everyday family has 12 weeks to become famous, or at least CW-level famous).
The Verdict?
I suppose The CW has met their goal of bringing in new programming that will appeal to its desired demo of younger females. How wrong can you go with more vampires and young princesses? Friday is worrisome, but Friday is the one night where having slightly lower ratings is expected. I don't think any of the new shows will be the next Gossip Girl, but I don't think they'll be the next Emily Owens, either.
Who Stays? Who Goes?
No surprises here, as the notable cuts - 90210, Gossip Girl, Cult and Emily Owens M.D. were either expected to end or were dropped from the schedule early on. Supernatural is back for a ninth season - no word on it being a final season. Nikita, though, will be back at some point to wrap things up over six episodes.
What's Coming?
Monday - Hart of Dixie and Beauty and the Beast move to Monday, the younger female option to Dancing With the Stars and Castle on ABC.
Tuesday - Opens with The Originals, which follows the original vampire family as its patriarch tries to uncover a plot to destroy him that may involve other family members. It's a spin-off of Vampire Diaries, as you might imagine. It's followed by a relocated Supernatural.
Wednesday - Arrow stays here to open the night, followed by The Tomorrow People, an adaptation of a British show about genetically-advanced teens who develop powers like telekinesis, transportation, and so on. Sounds like a younger version of Heroes, but hopefully without the dopey and melodramatic opening voice overs.
Thursday - Starts with The Vampire Diaries and ends with Reign, which follows a teenaged Mary, Queen of Scots, as she travels with her ladies in waiting to France to see the prince she's been arranged to marry. I never quite thought of The CW as a home for period drama, but a little Tudors-lite bodice ripping may be a nice change of pace.
Friday - The Carrie Diaries move here and gets paired with America's Next Top Model. I'm less surprised by the pairing than the night, but looking at the numbers The Carrie Diaries never quite caught on, so Friday it is, though I'd imagine the target demo for the show will be at the mall (time to count the DVR viewers!).
No specific date is given for the 20th cycle of ANTM, but I'm seeing summer 2013 everywhere, so I'm assuming it'll run into the fall. Same judges, etc. as the last time, but the models will include men for the first time. It's a nice wrinkle, though I wonder if they should have interspersed regular and themed cycles to goose ratings and not create an expectation for themed cycles (this being the fourth one in a row).
Kicking around for mid-season are Star Crossed (a teen-centered aliens openly live on Earth drama that's reminiscent of Alien Nation and District 9), The 100 (a group of juvenile delinquents is sent from a space station to repopulate a nuclear disaster-ravaged Earth), and The CW's annual horrific attempt at a reality show, Famous in 12 (an everyday family has 12 weeks to become famous, or at least CW-level famous).
The Verdict?
I suppose The CW has met their goal of bringing in new programming that will appeal to its desired demo of younger females. How wrong can you go with more vampires and young princesses? Friday is worrisome, but Friday is the one night where having slightly lower ratings is expected. I don't think any of the new shows will be the next Gossip Girl, but I don't think they'll be the next Emily Owens, either.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Upfronts: CBS
Another year, another CBS upfront where they get to show it's good to be number one.
Who Stays? Who Goes? As you'd expect from a network that's doing well, there aren't that many cuts that weren't already known. The most surprising is Vegas, whose late spring hiatus led to a drop in viewers from which it never recovered. The Eye also finally put Rules of Engagement out of our misery and retired CSI:NY one year too late.
What's Coming?
Monday - we get the largest collection of new shows on Monday, with How I Met Your Mother (in its last season) at 8 and Two Broke Girls at 9. In the 8:30 slot we get We Are Men, the latest attempt at a guy-centered sitcom, this time located at an apartment complex that caters to short-term renters (kind of a live-action version of Kirk Van Houten's life at the Bachelor Arms). Tony Shalhoub, Kal Penn and Chris O'Donnell are some of the tenants, not that a well-known cast has helped similar shows long since cancelled.
At 9:30 there's Mom, which stars Anna Faris as a recovering addict with two kids who winds up living with her recovering alcoholic mom, played by Allison Janney. This feels a lot like ABC's Back in the Game. I'm hoping Chuck Lorre's involvement will help elevate this.
At 10, we start the season with Hostages, starring Toni Collette as a surgeon whose family is taken hostage by a rogue FBI agent (Dylan McDermott) who wants Collette to assassinate the President when she operates on him. I expect the show will involve more of whatever conspiracy that's behind the kidnapping, otherwise they're going to have to push the surgery back a few seasons.
This will be replaced at midseason by Intelligence, which follows the exploits of a secret agent whose been implanted with a chip that allows him access to the Web, etc. I feel like this has been done before, or maybe it was an old April Fool's joke from Google. Anyway, can't say I'm interested.
Tuesday - NCIS leads to NCIS: LA and then to the relocated Person of Interest. Not sure it's wise to put so many highly-rated shows on one evening. On the other hand, there's not really a night that really needs the help from any of these shows (though they could have moved Person of Interest to Monday and let one of the new dramas go here to soak up the ratings).
Wednesday - unchanged with Survivor, Criminal Minds and CSI.
Thursday - Opens with The Big Bang Theory and closes with a relocated Two and a Half Men and Elementary. In the middle at 8:30 there's The Millers, starring Will Arnett as a recently divorced TV newsman whose dad (Beau Bridges) takes this news as a sign that he should divorce his wife of 43 years (played by Margo Martindale). Mom moves in with Arnett's character, Dad with his daughter and her family. Hijinks apparently ensue, not sure if the high-profile cast will tempt me to see if hijinks actually happen.
The other new sitcom is The Crazy Ones, which sees Robin Williams return to situation comedy as the boss of an ad agency whose success is due to his almost uncontrollable genius. Providing what control she can is his daughter, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar. As these things go she's the focused and organized one, and she, with the help of the agency's best and brightest (which includes James Wolk, Mad Men's Bob Benson) keep her dad in line. I actually like the chances for this one, as the timing is right with 30 Rock and The Office going away, the casting will draw early viewers, and it's the most original attempt at ripping off Mad Men to date.
Friday - Undercover Boss and Blue Bloods remain, with Hawaii 5-0 moving in between them.
Satuday - reruns and 48 Hours
Sunday - unchanged with 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race, The Good Wife and The Mentalist. I do wonder when CBS will finally give in and schedule the NFL overrun.
The lone new midseason show is Reckless, which is like Hart of Dixie, except for grownups. A lawyer from Chicago moves to Charleston and gets involved with the city attorney, a local guy, just as a scandal in the police department pits them against each other professionally (and may have More Sinister Implications, as you'd expect).
The Verdict?
CBS is going to stay on top, and will do so even if all of their new shows tank. Which they won't. I'm slightly more bullish on the new sitcoms here than at the other networks, though that may be from all the familiar names more than anything else. The dramas all fall in that Revenge/Scandal/Single Name Suggesting Serious Import mold that I'm not that interested in. But I assume at least one of them will be good enough - and get enough viewers thanks to its lead-in - to stick.
Who Stays? Who Goes? As you'd expect from a network that's doing well, there aren't that many cuts that weren't already known. The most surprising is Vegas, whose late spring hiatus led to a drop in viewers from which it never recovered. The Eye also finally put Rules of Engagement out of our misery and retired CSI:NY one year too late.
What's Coming?
Monday - we get the largest collection of new shows on Monday, with How I Met Your Mother (in its last season) at 8 and Two Broke Girls at 9. In the 8:30 slot we get We Are Men, the latest attempt at a guy-centered sitcom, this time located at an apartment complex that caters to short-term renters (kind of a live-action version of Kirk Van Houten's life at the Bachelor Arms). Tony Shalhoub, Kal Penn and Chris O'Donnell are some of the tenants, not that a well-known cast has helped similar shows long since cancelled.
At 9:30 there's Mom, which stars Anna Faris as a recovering addict with two kids who winds up living with her recovering alcoholic mom, played by Allison Janney. This feels a lot like ABC's Back in the Game. I'm hoping Chuck Lorre's involvement will help elevate this.
At 10, we start the season with Hostages, starring Toni Collette as a surgeon whose family is taken hostage by a rogue FBI agent (Dylan McDermott) who wants Collette to assassinate the President when she operates on him. I expect the show will involve more of whatever conspiracy that's behind the kidnapping, otherwise they're going to have to push the surgery back a few seasons.
This will be replaced at midseason by Intelligence, which follows the exploits of a secret agent whose been implanted with a chip that allows him access to the Web, etc. I feel like this has been done before, or maybe it was an old April Fool's joke from Google. Anyway, can't say I'm interested.
Tuesday - NCIS leads to NCIS: LA and then to the relocated Person of Interest. Not sure it's wise to put so many highly-rated shows on one evening. On the other hand, there's not really a night that really needs the help from any of these shows (though they could have moved Person of Interest to Monday and let one of the new dramas go here to soak up the ratings).
Wednesday - unchanged with Survivor, Criminal Minds and CSI.
Thursday - Opens with The Big Bang Theory and closes with a relocated Two and a Half Men and Elementary. In the middle at 8:30 there's The Millers, starring Will Arnett as a recently divorced TV newsman whose dad (Beau Bridges) takes this news as a sign that he should divorce his wife of 43 years (played by Margo Martindale). Mom moves in with Arnett's character, Dad with his daughter and her family. Hijinks apparently ensue, not sure if the high-profile cast will tempt me to see if hijinks actually happen.
The other new sitcom is The Crazy Ones, which sees Robin Williams return to situation comedy as the boss of an ad agency whose success is due to his almost uncontrollable genius. Providing what control she can is his daughter, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar. As these things go she's the focused and organized one, and she, with the help of the agency's best and brightest (which includes James Wolk, Mad Men's Bob Benson) keep her dad in line. I actually like the chances for this one, as the timing is right with 30 Rock and The Office going away, the casting will draw early viewers, and it's the most original attempt at ripping off Mad Men to date.
Friday - Undercover Boss and Blue Bloods remain, with Hawaii 5-0 moving in between them.
Satuday - reruns and 48 Hours
Sunday - unchanged with 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race, The Good Wife and The Mentalist. I do wonder when CBS will finally give in and schedule the NFL overrun.
The lone new midseason show is Reckless, which is like Hart of Dixie, except for grownups. A lawyer from Chicago moves to Charleston and gets involved with the city attorney, a local guy, just as a scandal in the police department pits them against each other professionally (and may have More Sinister Implications, as you'd expect).
The Verdict?
CBS is going to stay on top, and will do so even if all of their new shows tank. Which they won't. I'm slightly more bullish on the new sitcoms here than at the other networks, though that may be from all the familiar names more than anything else. The dramas all fall in that Revenge/Scandal/Single Name Suggesting Serious Import mold that I'm not that interested in. But I assume at least one of them will be good enough - and get enough viewers thanks to its lead-in - to stick.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Upfronts: ABC
How do you spell ABC? M-E-H. That describes the network's overall ratings (stuck in third with NBC closing) and the general offerings, which tend not to fail miserably but also don't wow. And with one or two exceptions, we're getting more of the same for 2013-14.
Who Stays? Who Goes? There's nothing tremendously surprising for ABC in the shows they brought back and those they cut loose. Based on premise alone I'd slated The Neighbors for cancellation, but the aliens next door sitcom found a place in and among ABC's other (higher-rated) shows and is coming back. Two of last year's borderline renewals - Body of Proof and Happy Endings - met the axe this time around. Otherwise, the shows you expect to be back are back and those that aren't aren't.
What's Coming?
Monday - Dancing with the Stars expands to two hours, and will apparently combine performance and results. Curious to see how that works out, as it could be a guide for other mature reality shows whose sagging ratings may have something to do with padded episodes covering multiple nights. It's followed by Castle. And while it's not listed, you have to expect at some point during the season The Bachelor will show up in here.
Tuesday - all new, and led by what might be ABC's most notable new show, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It's Marvel's first TV show, and set in the same universe as its movies (Avengers, Iron Man, etc.), expect some synergy (if not actual appearances by the movies' stars). It's about an elite organization whose members battle the most dangerous criminals. Joss Whedon is involved, which just doubles the amount of fanboy hysterics.
Not sure if this is scheduled too early. It's a good time to draw in the younger eyes, but may not be able to be adult enough for those fans.
Then comes two sitcoms, The Goldbergs and Trophy Wife. The former is set in the 1980s and is about the titular family and their wacky antics, as seen through the eyes of 11-year old Adam and his video camera. As far as I can tell it's not related to the radio-turned-TV show of the same name, and the premise makes me miss Everybody Hates Chris. Trophy Wife is about a woman who meets a guy at a karaoke bar and winds up married to him a year later. She then has to figure out how to be a stepmom while under the watchful eye of two ex-wives. There are some notable names in the cast (Bradley Whitford, Marcia Gay Harden), but the set-up doesn't do much for me.
The night ends with Lucky 7, a drama about a group of gas station employees who play the lottery together, their lives, and how their lives would change if they ever win. They'd better win by October sweeps, otherwise I don't know what keeps this show going.
Wednesday - The Middle and Modern Family are at 8 and 9. In the first half hour we get Back in the Game, where a single mom and her son moves in with her dad (James Caan!). Both dad and daughter are former athletes who never reached their potential, and the son is basically inept at sports. Caan's character winds up coaching his Little League team, so there won't be any vicarious living through the kid, nosiree.
The other half hour is Super Fun Night, where a trio of party girls have a standing night out (the Super Fun Night of the title) disrupted when one of them gets a promotion and a new boyfriend, who can get them into an even more hip/exclusive/expensive bar. So is every episode some sort of two dates/one night scenario, where the one woman bounces between her guy and her friends? I don't quite get it, though I am of an age and gender where I'm not supposed to get it.
The night ends with Nashville.
Thursday - opens with Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, where Lewis Carroll gets the Once Upon a Time treatment. Alice is, like the real Alice, a girl in Victorian England, but in this case she has actually been to Wonderland, and the authorities want to drug her up so she'll forget her hallucinations. But a couple of Wonderland creatures show up and they escape down the rabbit hole and on to new adventures. I suppose if you're into the parent show you might be into this one. Fair warning: John Lithgow will be on hand to chew the scenery - literally and otherwise - as the White Rabbit.
Grey's Anatomy and Scandal close things out.
Friday - It's an all-returning lineup, with Last Man Standing, a relocated The Neighbors, Shark Tank and 20/20.
Saturday - college football in the fall, reruns or other crap in the spring.
Sunday - things are familiar up to 10 pm, with America's Funniest Home Videos, Once Upon a Time, and Revenge. The last show of the night is Betrayal, about a man and woman who enter into an affair only to have the man wind up defending a murder suspect who is being prosecuted by the woman's husband. I think the suspect is also the defense attorney's brother in law, the description is a little confusing. But it seems like it'll fit in here as well as anything else.
Of all the possible midseason shows, the only one that caught my eye was Resurrection, where a young boy suddenly wakes up in rural China, thousands of miles away and 30 years after dying in Arcadia, Missouri. He's returned home by an Immigration agent, and while the expected questions come, the boy also remembers details about his death that only he'd know as the decedent, which makes things extra awkward, I'm sure. I could see this as part of a revamped supernatural Tuesday.
The Verdict?
This seems like a line-up created to keep ABC in third place. They might get a bump if the dramas take off, but the sitcoms are a pretty dull bunch, which is a problem. The network should be using Modern Family to develop and launch other shows into other nights, but they need to come up with something that can develop and audience and keep it when it moves. Suburgatory might have been able to do that, but it's been handled in such a way that it's not going to happen.
The best hope here is that S.H.I.E.L.D. blows up and gives the network a foothold on Tuesday that they can exploit. Otherwise, ABC will probably be in the same place - or worse - this time next year.
Who Stays? Who Goes? There's nothing tremendously surprising for ABC in the shows they brought back and those they cut loose. Based on premise alone I'd slated The Neighbors for cancellation, but the aliens next door sitcom found a place in and among ABC's other (higher-rated) shows and is coming back. Two of last year's borderline renewals - Body of Proof and Happy Endings - met the axe this time around. Otherwise, the shows you expect to be back are back and those that aren't aren't.
What's Coming?
Monday - Dancing with the Stars expands to two hours, and will apparently combine performance and results. Curious to see how that works out, as it could be a guide for other mature reality shows whose sagging ratings may have something to do with padded episodes covering multiple nights. It's followed by Castle. And while it's not listed, you have to expect at some point during the season The Bachelor will show up in here.
Tuesday - all new, and led by what might be ABC's most notable new show, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It's Marvel's first TV show, and set in the same universe as its movies (Avengers, Iron Man, etc.), expect some synergy (if not actual appearances by the movies' stars). It's about an elite organization whose members battle the most dangerous criminals. Joss Whedon is involved, which just doubles the amount of fanboy hysterics.
Not sure if this is scheduled too early. It's a good time to draw in the younger eyes, but may not be able to be adult enough for those fans.
Then comes two sitcoms, The Goldbergs and Trophy Wife. The former is set in the 1980s and is about the titular family and their wacky antics, as seen through the eyes of 11-year old Adam and his video camera. As far as I can tell it's not related to the radio-turned-TV show of the same name, and the premise makes me miss Everybody Hates Chris. Trophy Wife is about a woman who meets a guy at a karaoke bar and winds up married to him a year later. She then has to figure out how to be a stepmom while under the watchful eye of two ex-wives. There are some notable names in the cast (Bradley Whitford, Marcia Gay Harden), but the set-up doesn't do much for me.
The night ends with Lucky 7, a drama about a group of gas station employees who play the lottery together, their lives, and how their lives would change if they ever win. They'd better win by October sweeps, otherwise I don't know what keeps this show going.
Wednesday - The Middle and Modern Family are at 8 and 9. In the first half hour we get Back in the Game, where a single mom and her son moves in with her dad (James Caan!). Both dad and daughter are former athletes who never reached their potential, and the son is basically inept at sports. Caan's character winds up coaching his Little League team, so there won't be any vicarious living through the kid, nosiree.
The other half hour is Super Fun Night, where a trio of party girls have a standing night out (the Super Fun Night of the title) disrupted when one of them gets a promotion and a new boyfriend, who can get them into an even more hip/exclusive/expensive bar. So is every episode some sort of two dates/one night scenario, where the one woman bounces between her guy and her friends? I don't quite get it, though I am of an age and gender where I'm not supposed to get it.
The night ends with Nashville.
Thursday - opens with Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, where Lewis Carroll gets the Once Upon a Time treatment. Alice is, like the real Alice, a girl in Victorian England, but in this case she has actually been to Wonderland, and the authorities want to drug her up so she'll forget her hallucinations. But a couple of Wonderland creatures show up and they escape down the rabbit hole and on to new adventures. I suppose if you're into the parent show you might be into this one. Fair warning: John Lithgow will be on hand to chew the scenery - literally and otherwise - as the White Rabbit.
Grey's Anatomy and Scandal close things out.
Friday - It's an all-returning lineup, with Last Man Standing, a relocated The Neighbors, Shark Tank and 20/20.
Saturday - college football in the fall, reruns or other crap in the spring.
Sunday - things are familiar up to 10 pm, with America's Funniest Home Videos, Once Upon a Time, and Revenge. The last show of the night is Betrayal, about a man and woman who enter into an affair only to have the man wind up defending a murder suspect who is being prosecuted by the woman's husband. I think the suspect is also the defense attorney's brother in law, the description is a little confusing. But it seems like it'll fit in here as well as anything else.
Of all the possible midseason shows, the only one that caught my eye was Resurrection, where a young boy suddenly wakes up in rural China, thousands of miles away and 30 years after dying in Arcadia, Missouri. He's returned home by an Immigration agent, and while the expected questions come, the boy also remembers details about his death that only he'd know as the decedent, which makes things extra awkward, I'm sure. I could see this as part of a revamped supernatural Tuesday.
The Verdict?
This seems like a line-up created to keep ABC in third place. They might get a bump if the dramas take off, but the sitcoms are a pretty dull bunch, which is a problem. The network should be using Modern Family to develop and launch other shows into other nights, but they need to come up with something that can develop and audience and keep it when it moves. Suburgatory might have been able to do that, but it's been handled in such a way that it's not going to happen.
The best hope here is that S.H.I.E.L.D. blows up and gives the network a foothold on Tuesday that they can exploit. Otherwise, ABC will probably be in the same place - or worse - this time next year.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Up Fronts: Fox
It's not been a great year for Fox, what with American Idol ratings falling and not much of the new stuff catching on with viewers. So how are they going to try to recapture the Fox Attitude?
Who's Staying? Who's Going? - Odds are if you like a Fox show it's going to be on air again, which is interesting given that Fox is slumping. About the only surprise on the cancellation list is The Cleveland Show.
What's Coming?
Monday - the year will start with Bones, followed by Sleepy Hollow, a contemporary take on the Ichabod Crane tale, except that Crane is resurrected and brought to the present day to help solve a mystery dating back to his own time so as to save humanity. Wait, what?
Mid-season brings Almost Human (think Robocop meets Blade Runner, with JJ Abrams lending his name), leading into the second season of The Following, which I've enjoyed, even if I find it hard to buy into all of the successes that Joe Carroll and his plucky band of psychopaths have had against the FBI.
Tuesday - Brings two new sitcoms. One is Dads, where a pair of video game creators (Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi) have to deal with taking in their dads (Marin Mull and Peter Riegert). Generic, but will hopefully use the cast to good effect. The other new sitcom, and possibly the most promising new show, is Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a police comedy starring Andy Samberg as the hotshot detective and Andre Braugher as his new captain. They had me at Andre.
New Girl and The Mindy Project finish the night.
Wednesday - gives us The X Factor in the fall and the Randy Jacksonless American Idol in the spring. I wonder how much longer Fox is going to try to make The X Factor a thing.
Thursday - results shows for the two singing shows lead into Glee in the fall and new show Rake in at midseason. Rake stars Greg Kinnear as a defense attorney who lives on the edge and takes on the unwinnable cases, addicted to the challenge as much as he's addicted to anything else. I assume there will be no singing.
Friday - leads with Junior Masterchef, a version of Masterchef for kids. American Juniors was apparently not enough of an object lesson on why this is a bad idea. It's followed by reruns of Sleepy Hollow (because, huh?). Later in the fall, Bones moves here along with Raising Hope and new comedy Enlisted, a military comedy set at an Army base in Florida.
Saturday - sports and reruns
Sunday - Animation Domination, unchanged.
As for unscheduled stuff, the big announcement is the return of 24 for a special 12 episode run. Not much info besides that, but bringing Jack back will boost ratings. The only other unscheduled show that looks interesting is Gang Related, about cops taking on gangs in Los Angeles, but that's mostly from a casting perspective (Terry O'Quinn and RZA, together at last).
The Verdict?
Fox has a really good looking Tuesday, and Monday could work out for them once Sleepy Hollow gets out of the way. Sunday should be fine, too. They've got a burgeoning hole in the middle of the week with the reality shows, especially if they can't figure out a way to shore up AI). A more consistent and coherent Glee wouldn't hurt either. And while Friday nights are typically low risk, I have no idea what they're trying to do there. They'd better hope some of their returning shows stay strong or even build.
Who's Staying? Who's Going? - Odds are if you like a Fox show it's going to be on air again, which is interesting given that Fox is slumping. About the only surprise on the cancellation list is The Cleveland Show.
What's Coming?
Monday - the year will start with Bones, followed by Sleepy Hollow, a contemporary take on the Ichabod Crane tale, except that Crane is resurrected and brought to the present day to help solve a mystery dating back to his own time so as to save humanity. Wait, what?
Mid-season brings Almost Human (think Robocop meets Blade Runner, with JJ Abrams lending his name), leading into the second season of The Following, which I've enjoyed, even if I find it hard to buy into all of the successes that Joe Carroll and his plucky band of psychopaths have had against the FBI.
Tuesday - Brings two new sitcoms. One is Dads, where a pair of video game creators (Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi) have to deal with taking in their dads (Marin Mull and Peter Riegert). Generic, but will hopefully use the cast to good effect. The other new sitcom, and possibly the most promising new show, is Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a police comedy starring Andy Samberg as the hotshot detective and Andre Braugher as his new captain. They had me at Andre.
New Girl and The Mindy Project finish the night.
Wednesday - gives us The X Factor in the fall and the Randy Jacksonless American Idol in the spring. I wonder how much longer Fox is going to try to make The X Factor a thing.
Thursday - results shows for the two singing shows lead into Glee in the fall and new show Rake in at midseason. Rake stars Greg Kinnear as a defense attorney who lives on the edge and takes on the unwinnable cases, addicted to the challenge as much as he's addicted to anything else. I assume there will be no singing.
Friday - leads with Junior Masterchef, a version of Masterchef for kids. American Juniors was apparently not enough of an object lesson on why this is a bad idea. It's followed by reruns of Sleepy Hollow (because, huh?). Later in the fall, Bones moves here along with Raising Hope and new comedy Enlisted, a military comedy set at an Army base in Florida.
Saturday - sports and reruns
Sunday - Animation Domination, unchanged.
As for unscheduled stuff, the big announcement is the return of 24 for a special 12 episode run. Not much info besides that, but bringing Jack back will boost ratings. The only other unscheduled show that looks interesting is Gang Related, about cops taking on gangs in Los Angeles, but that's mostly from a casting perspective (Terry O'Quinn and RZA, together at last).
The Verdict?
Fox has a really good looking Tuesday, and Monday could work out for them once Sleepy Hollow gets out of the way. Sunday should be fine, too. They've got a burgeoning hole in the middle of the week with the reality shows, especially if they can't figure out a way to shore up AI). A more consistent and coherent Glee wouldn't hurt either. And while Friday nights are typically low risk, I have no idea what they're trying to do there. They'd better hope some of their returning shows stay strong or even build.
Up Fronts: NBC
It's that time of year again, when the broadcast networks put their 2013-14 schedules into shape in the hopes of selling lots of ad time. First up this week is NBC.
Who's Staying? Who's Going? If you liked a first season show on NBC this season, I hope you didn't like it too much. Only two new shows made it to a second season, Revolution and Chicago Fire (which is getting a spin-off). Perhaps the only surprising cancellation was Rock Center with Brian Williams, which wasn't doing all that well but gave the network a chance to fill time with some news-entertainment synergy.
As for what's staying, I have to give the network kudos for renewing Community. It seemed like a goner after Dan Harmon left and the season premiere was bumped from October to February, but between the critical support, small but intense fanbase, and the retirement of 30 Rock and The Office, there's a sensibility in keeping it around.
The other surprise renewal for me was Parenthood, though being on the same night as The Voice must have helped.
What's Coming?
You schedule for the week starting in the fall:
Monday - The Voice takes two hours and leads into The Blacklist, about a long-time figure on the FBI's Most Wanted List (played by James Spader), who turns himself in with an offer to catch a terrorist, with one condition: he will only work with newly-trained FBI profiler Liz Keen.
To me this sounds like a combo of 24 (rogue government agent, super bad guys) and The Following (the one on one relationship between criminal and agent with a heavy dose of mystery), which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I do wonder how quickly they'll catch the terrorist and this will become a bad guy of the week procedural. Depends how long Spader's blacklist really is.
Tuesday - All returners, with The Biggest Loser, The Voice results show, and Chicago Fire. At midseason we jettison The Biggest Loser for two sitcoms. The Family Guide is told in flashback form (Jason Bateman filling in for Bob Saget), recapping from a son's perspective how his parent's divorce let the members of the family discover who they really are. The parents are a pair of eccentrics played by J.K. Simmons (he's blind but still does all the dad stuff, with Bateman's 11 year-old character as his wingman) and Parker Posey. Curious, but the description makes it sound like it's trying too hard.
The other show is About a Boy, which is based on the Nick Hornby book and ensuing movie. It might as well be called One and a Half Men.
Wednesday - Revolution starts the night (which I think is a mistake, it's not strong enough to start an evening, and the earlier hour will likely dial back the action), followed by Law & Order: SVU, and finishes with Ironsides, a remake of the Raymond Burr original about a paralyzed police detective (played now by Blair Underwood) who, with the help of a hand-selected team, takes on the tough cases and puts the bad guys away.
I'll admit to loving the original show (I love old cop shows), but am leery of how this will go given the fate of other remakes in the recent past. I'm also wondering how well the show will work outside of the backdrop of the 1960s, where having a woman and an African-American in detective roles was pretty rare.
Thursday - opens with Parks and Rec, and then comes the onslaught of family sitcoms. We have:
* Welcome to the Family, where two recent high school grads find out they're expecting. One family is white, the other Hispanic. Cross-cultural hilarity ensues. I'd like to call it a remake of Condo but I think I'm the only person who remembers that show. It would explain why networks keep trying to make a sitcom with this premise. Too bad, too, as I like the cast.
* Sean Saves the World, where Sean Hayes plays a divorced gay dad who has his teenaged daughter move in full-time. Life-work balance hilarity ensues. There's also a pushy mom played by Linda Lavin. Snore.
* The Michael J. Fox Show has its namesake playing a news anchor set to return to work after taking time off to be with family and fight Parkinson's Disease. Work-life-incurable neurological illness hilarity ensues.
I'm hoping Fox's show pans out, for obvious reasons.
The night ends with Parenthood, which confirms that NBC isn't looking to rebuild its Thursday night ratings juggernaut. It seems like a fine show - I've seen an episode or two - but carrying Thursday night is beyond its powers.
Friday - it's fantasy night on NBC, starting with Dateline and Grimm and leading to the new 10 pm show, Dracula. Which, as you might imagine, is about a vampire. In this case, Drac has moved to London in the late 19th century to find the people who made him undead and make them pay. He's also into science and stuff, apparently.
At midseason the blood sucker moves aside for Crossbones, which stars John Malkovich as Blackbeard. This is really going to be awesome or horrific. Or awesomely horrific. Too bad it's been put in the sci-fi/fantasy ghetto.
Saturday - repeats
Sunday - football, then at midseason we get American Dream Builders (aka Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 2.0), Believe (a show about a kid with all sorts of supernatural mental powers and the group that protects her from those looking to exploit her powers), and Crisis (the kids of various DC power brokers are kidnapped while on a school trip, forcing their parents to cross wits with the mastermind of the kidnapping).
Unscheduled at this point are Community (which I assume will fill in for whatever Thursday night show first gets the axe), Chicago Fire spin-off Chicago P.D. (which, in Dick Wolf style, will eventually spawn Chicago EMT, Chicago Health Inspector and Chicago Sealer of Weights and Measures), a very generic-sounding dude sticom (The Undateables), a very generic-sounding medical drama (The Night Shift), a cross between Millionaire and Big Brother (The Million Second Quiz), and a show that might as well be called Master Top Chef (Food Fighters).
The Verdict?
It's not horrible, especially by recent NBC standards. Sunday (during football season), Monday and Tuesday look like they'll do well, though I'm worried NBC is running The Voice into the ground. The problem day for me is Wednesday, especially if Thursday and Friday trade in ratings for critical/genre success. I like Revolution but don't think it's at the point where it can lead off a night.
It's also hard to say without having seen any of them, but it feels like NBC is still trying the "broader" sitcom approach, albeit not quite as broad as, say, Animal Hospital. Michael J. Fox's show is the wild card here, I think.
Who's Staying? Who's Going? If you liked a first season show on NBC this season, I hope you didn't like it too much. Only two new shows made it to a second season, Revolution and Chicago Fire (which is getting a spin-off). Perhaps the only surprising cancellation was Rock Center with Brian Williams, which wasn't doing all that well but gave the network a chance to fill time with some news-entertainment synergy.
As for what's staying, I have to give the network kudos for renewing Community. It seemed like a goner after Dan Harmon left and the season premiere was bumped from October to February, but between the critical support, small but intense fanbase, and the retirement of 30 Rock and The Office, there's a sensibility in keeping it around.
The other surprise renewal for me was Parenthood, though being on the same night as The Voice must have helped.
What's Coming?
You schedule for the week starting in the fall:
Monday - The Voice takes two hours and leads into The Blacklist, about a long-time figure on the FBI's Most Wanted List (played by James Spader), who turns himself in with an offer to catch a terrorist, with one condition: he will only work with newly-trained FBI profiler Liz Keen.
To me this sounds like a combo of 24 (rogue government agent, super bad guys) and The Following (the one on one relationship between criminal and agent with a heavy dose of mystery), which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I do wonder how quickly they'll catch the terrorist and this will become a bad guy of the week procedural. Depends how long Spader's blacklist really is.
Tuesday - All returners, with The Biggest Loser, The Voice results show, and Chicago Fire. At midseason we jettison The Biggest Loser for two sitcoms. The Family Guide is told in flashback form (Jason Bateman filling in for Bob Saget), recapping from a son's perspective how his parent's divorce let the members of the family discover who they really are. The parents are a pair of eccentrics played by J.K. Simmons (he's blind but still does all the dad stuff, with Bateman's 11 year-old character as his wingman) and Parker Posey. Curious, but the description makes it sound like it's trying too hard.
The other show is About a Boy, which is based on the Nick Hornby book and ensuing movie. It might as well be called One and a Half Men.
Wednesday - Revolution starts the night (which I think is a mistake, it's not strong enough to start an evening, and the earlier hour will likely dial back the action), followed by Law & Order: SVU, and finishes with Ironsides, a remake of the Raymond Burr original about a paralyzed police detective (played now by Blair Underwood) who, with the help of a hand-selected team, takes on the tough cases and puts the bad guys away.
I'll admit to loving the original show (I love old cop shows), but am leery of how this will go given the fate of other remakes in the recent past. I'm also wondering how well the show will work outside of the backdrop of the 1960s, where having a woman and an African-American in detective roles was pretty rare.
Thursday - opens with Parks and Rec, and then comes the onslaught of family sitcoms. We have:
* Welcome to the Family, where two recent high school grads find out they're expecting. One family is white, the other Hispanic. Cross-cultural hilarity ensues. I'd like to call it a remake of Condo but I think I'm the only person who remembers that show. It would explain why networks keep trying to make a sitcom with this premise. Too bad, too, as I like the cast.
* Sean Saves the World, where Sean Hayes plays a divorced gay dad who has his teenaged daughter move in full-time. Life-work balance hilarity ensues. There's also a pushy mom played by Linda Lavin. Snore.
* The Michael J. Fox Show has its namesake playing a news anchor set to return to work after taking time off to be with family and fight Parkinson's Disease. Work-life-incurable neurological illness hilarity ensues.
I'm hoping Fox's show pans out, for obvious reasons.
The night ends with Parenthood, which confirms that NBC isn't looking to rebuild its Thursday night ratings juggernaut. It seems like a fine show - I've seen an episode or two - but carrying Thursday night is beyond its powers.
Friday - it's fantasy night on NBC, starting with Dateline and Grimm and leading to the new 10 pm show, Dracula. Which, as you might imagine, is about a vampire. In this case, Drac has moved to London in the late 19th century to find the people who made him undead and make them pay. He's also into science and stuff, apparently.
At midseason the blood sucker moves aside for Crossbones, which stars John Malkovich as Blackbeard. This is really going to be awesome or horrific. Or awesomely horrific. Too bad it's been put in the sci-fi/fantasy ghetto.
Saturday - repeats
Sunday - football, then at midseason we get American Dream Builders (aka Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 2.0), Believe (a show about a kid with all sorts of supernatural mental powers and the group that protects her from those looking to exploit her powers), and Crisis (the kids of various DC power brokers are kidnapped while on a school trip, forcing their parents to cross wits with the mastermind of the kidnapping).
Unscheduled at this point are Community (which I assume will fill in for whatever Thursday night show first gets the axe), Chicago Fire spin-off Chicago P.D. (which, in Dick Wolf style, will eventually spawn Chicago EMT, Chicago Health Inspector and Chicago Sealer of Weights and Measures), a very generic-sounding dude sticom (The Undateables), a very generic-sounding medical drama (The Night Shift), a cross between Millionaire and Big Brother (The Million Second Quiz), and a show that might as well be called Master Top Chef (Food Fighters).
The Verdict?
It's not horrible, especially by recent NBC standards. Sunday (during football season), Monday and Tuesday look like they'll do well, though I'm worried NBC is running The Voice into the ground. The problem day for me is Wednesday, especially if Thursday and Friday trade in ratings for critical/genre success. I like Revolution but don't think it's at the point where it can lead off a night.
It's also hard to say without having seen any of them, but it feels like NBC is still trying the "broader" sitcom approach, albeit not quite as broad as, say, Animal Hospital. Michael J. Fox's show is the wild card here, I think.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Upfronts: The Aftermath
Some half-formed ill-advised summation of last week.
Who won? Here's how I rate where the networks are based on their tentative 2012-13 schedules.
5. NBC. You want to brand yourself as the network for comedy? Fine, but it's probably a bad time to try this when (a) your critically praised but low-rated sitcoms are wrapping (30 Rock), should be wrapping (The Office), or moved to a night where 98 percent of the viewership will be time shifted (Community), and (b) the new sitcoms you roll out are uninspiring. I'm also a little worried that you've buried your most interesting new show, Do No Harm, after Celebrity Apprentice and Fashion Star. That should do wonders for the ratings.
4. The CW. I like that they've given most nights a theme, and that they're using Friday for lower-rated shows that could move if/when something tanks. What I don't like is that their new shows don't exactly jump out at you. I suppose in a couple cases you can argue they're rebooting shows (or show ideas) for a younger generation, and maybe that will work. I suppose I should just be happy that they've stopped trying to build shows around social media.
3. ABC. Still concerned about their older shows being able to maintain ratings, and I don't care for the premises of most of their new sitcoms. They do have a couple of dramas I'm looking forward to sampling, and they have a couple of very solid days in Wednesday and (non-football) Sunday.
2. Fox. They've done the smart thing by making X Factor and American Idol complimentary pieces rather than frenemies. I don't know if this will help slow down The Voice, which they're not taking on head to head, but there's at least a season-long blueprint of how Fox is handling their music shows. Throwing Glee into the mix on Thursday is worrisome, given the competition. I also like that they're maintaining a sci-fi(ish) Friday night, even if it marginalizes the genre. Fringe has gotten to this point thanks to all of the time shifters, certainly Touch is an able candidate to do the same.
1. CBS. Easy to be the winner when you have so few shows to replace. It also helps that they can move shows around and create nights where new shows can be protected a bit and, even if they tank, don't create too many problems for the night overall. Some of the nights are looking a little hoary (Wednesday most notably), but I don't think CBS is in any danger of not being the most watched network next season.
Where are the night and time bloodbaths?
Three places where I think the greatest clashes will emerge:
1. Monday, 8pm. You've got ABC's older reality programs (DWTS/The Bachelor) up against NBC's only real hit (The Voice) versus CBS and their lead in of How I Met Your Mother and Fox with Bones. Lots of mature programming in there, it'll be interesting to see who gives.
2. Tuesday, 9pm. Tuesday always seemed like a wasteland to me, but now and 9 you have a sitcom battle royale, with ABC, NBC, and Fox throwing shows in there. ABC's shows are returning but (a) aren't that strong and (b) have moved from other times. NBC's are both brand new, while Fox likely has the upper hand with the returning New Girl and Mindy Kaling's show.
3. Thursday, 9pm. Always a battle here, now joined by Fox moving Glee. Will it cut into Grey's female-friendly demo? Will the NBC comedies get put off to DVR viewing? Or will Glee's cooling ratings and seemingly random plot generation make the move another step towards an early cancellation?
What new shows am I most/least interested in?
Most:
1. Last Resort, mostly because it stars Andre Braugher, who is awesome.
2. Elementary, in the hopes that it can regularly provide solid Holmes-related entertainment in the void left by the Sherlock series on PBS.
3. Do No Harm, even though I suspect it will not last long if left on Sunday at 10.
Least:
1. The Neighbors, which I'm pretty sure is on ABC's schedule because someone lost a bet.
2. Emily Owens, M.D., because I am not a 14 year old girl.
3. Guys With Kids, as I didn't care for the 4000 or so other sitcoms about men trying to reclaim their manhood.
Who won? Here's how I rate where the networks are based on their tentative 2012-13 schedules.
5. NBC. You want to brand yourself as the network for comedy? Fine, but it's probably a bad time to try this when (a) your critically praised but low-rated sitcoms are wrapping (30 Rock), should be wrapping (The Office), or moved to a night where 98 percent of the viewership will be time shifted (Community), and (b) the new sitcoms you roll out are uninspiring. I'm also a little worried that you've buried your most interesting new show, Do No Harm, after Celebrity Apprentice and Fashion Star. That should do wonders for the ratings.
4. The CW. I like that they've given most nights a theme, and that they're using Friday for lower-rated shows that could move if/when something tanks. What I don't like is that their new shows don't exactly jump out at you. I suppose in a couple cases you can argue they're rebooting shows (or show ideas) for a younger generation, and maybe that will work. I suppose I should just be happy that they've stopped trying to build shows around social media.
3. ABC. Still concerned about their older shows being able to maintain ratings, and I don't care for the premises of most of their new sitcoms. They do have a couple of dramas I'm looking forward to sampling, and they have a couple of very solid days in Wednesday and (non-football) Sunday.
2. Fox. They've done the smart thing by making X Factor and American Idol complimentary pieces rather than frenemies. I don't know if this will help slow down The Voice, which they're not taking on head to head, but there's at least a season-long blueprint of how Fox is handling their music shows. Throwing Glee into the mix on Thursday is worrisome, given the competition. I also like that they're maintaining a sci-fi(ish) Friday night, even if it marginalizes the genre. Fringe has gotten to this point thanks to all of the time shifters, certainly Touch is an able candidate to do the same.
1. CBS. Easy to be the winner when you have so few shows to replace. It also helps that they can move shows around and create nights where new shows can be protected a bit and, even if they tank, don't create too many problems for the night overall. Some of the nights are looking a little hoary (Wednesday most notably), but I don't think CBS is in any danger of not being the most watched network next season.
Where are the night and time bloodbaths?
Three places where I think the greatest clashes will emerge:
1. Monday, 8pm. You've got ABC's older reality programs (DWTS/The Bachelor) up against NBC's only real hit (The Voice) versus CBS and their lead in of How I Met Your Mother and Fox with Bones. Lots of mature programming in there, it'll be interesting to see who gives.
2. Tuesday, 9pm. Tuesday always seemed like a wasteland to me, but now and 9 you have a sitcom battle royale, with ABC, NBC, and Fox throwing shows in there. ABC's shows are returning but (a) aren't that strong and (b) have moved from other times. NBC's are both brand new, while Fox likely has the upper hand with the returning New Girl and Mindy Kaling's show.
3. Thursday, 9pm. Always a battle here, now joined by Fox moving Glee. Will it cut into Grey's female-friendly demo? Will the NBC comedies get put off to DVR viewing? Or will Glee's cooling ratings and seemingly random plot generation make the move another step towards an early cancellation?
What new shows am I most/least interested in?
Most:
1. Last Resort, mostly because it stars Andre Braugher, who is awesome.
2. Elementary, in the hopes that it can regularly provide solid Holmes-related entertainment in the void left by the Sherlock series on PBS.
3. Do No Harm, even though I suspect it will not last long if left on Sunday at 10.
Least:
1. The Neighbors, which I'm pretty sure is on ABC's schedule because someone lost a bet.
2. Emily Owens, M.D., because I am not a 14 year old girl.
3. Guys With Kids, as I didn't care for the 4000 or so other sitcoms about men trying to reclaim their manhood.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Upfronts: The CW
The last netlet standing has announced their 2012-13 schedule, and it's pretty much what you'd expect from an outfit that targets teens and tweens.
What's back? What's not? Outside of the shows that were cancelled early in their runs, the two noteworthy cancellations were The Secret Circle and Ringer. Neither was especially surprising, though I thought Ringer might pick up a second season. Shows that have done worse were renewed.
What's New? Three new shows for the fall, two midseason debuts, and a fair amount of shuffling:
Monday sees 90210 move to 8 pm, with the final season of Gossip Girl following. Once that show wraps, we'll get The Carrie Diaries, aka Teen Sex and the City, which is about Carrie Bradshaw growing up in the 1980s. Looking forward to the Very Special Episode about her first herpes scare.
Tuesday goes medical with Hart of Dixie at a new day and time, followed by the new show Emily Owens, M.D., which sounds like Grey's Anatomy: The New Class. Honestly, it's about a new intern at a hospital who learns that it's pretty much like high school all over again. So it's Grey's without the angst. Snore.
Wednesday leads with Arrow, a drama about the Green Arrow. Well timed given the success of The Avengers, not sure if the archery guy is the best one to spin into a TV show. That's followed by Supernatural, which seems like a nice fit. Thought this might be the last season but apparently not, no talk of it that I could find.
Thursday returns The Vampire Diaries and follows it with a reboot of Beauty and the Beast. I suppose it's been long enough since the CBS version to give it another shot, and maybe nostalgic moms will watch with their daughters. It's not the worst idea the network's ever had.
Friday starts with a relocated America's Next Top Model, which to me seems like a vote of no confidence between the flagging ratings and the cutting loose of Nigel Barker, J. Alexander, and Jay Manuel. After that it's Nikita, which did reasonably well on Fridays this past season (by CW standards for Friday). I don't know if they're a natural pair, but I'm happy to see that the network isn't trying to put more model-related programming on to play off of ANTM.
Saturday and Sunday continue as nights for the local affiliates to program, probably the smartest thing The CW has ever done.
Elsewhere at midseason you already know about The Carrie Diaries. The other show waiting in the wings is Cult, which is about a journalist whose brother claims that a TV show (also called Cult) is trying to hurt him. When the brother goes missing the journalist goes into action, and finds a production assistant on the show who is willing to help him uncover the darker side of the show and its rabid fans.
Summing up, I suppose it's a good thing that The CW has created thematic elements to each night, and that they're reasonably distinct (with the exception of Friday, whose theme seems to be "we need to put these shows someplace"). I do think that Tuesday may be a repetitive - the main difference in them seems to be that one is set at a hospital - but Monday's stew of gossip and sex seems to work for them, so maybe I'm making something out of this that isn't there. Anyway, nothing I'm really excited about but a seeming decent offering for the network's core viewers.
What's back? What's not? Outside of the shows that were cancelled early in their runs, the two noteworthy cancellations were The Secret Circle and Ringer. Neither was especially surprising, though I thought Ringer might pick up a second season. Shows that have done worse were renewed.
What's New? Three new shows for the fall, two midseason debuts, and a fair amount of shuffling:
Monday sees 90210 move to 8 pm, with the final season of Gossip Girl following. Once that show wraps, we'll get The Carrie Diaries, aka Teen Sex and the City, which is about Carrie Bradshaw growing up in the 1980s. Looking forward to the Very Special Episode about her first herpes scare.
Tuesday goes medical with Hart of Dixie at a new day and time, followed by the new show Emily Owens, M.D., which sounds like Grey's Anatomy: The New Class. Honestly, it's about a new intern at a hospital who learns that it's pretty much like high school all over again. So it's Grey's without the angst. Snore.
Wednesday leads with Arrow, a drama about the Green Arrow. Well timed given the success of The Avengers, not sure if the archery guy is the best one to spin into a TV show. That's followed by Supernatural, which seems like a nice fit. Thought this might be the last season but apparently not, no talk of it that I could find.
Thursday returns The Vampire Diaries and follows it with a reboot of Beauty and the Beast. I suppose it's been long enough since the CBS version to give it another shot, and maybe nostalgic moms will watch with their daughters. It's not the worst idea the network's ever had.
Friday starts with a relocated America's Next Top Model, which to me seems like a vote of no confidence between the flagging ratings and the cutting loose of Nigel Barker, J. Alexander, and Jay Manuel. After that it's Nikita, which did reasonably well on Fridays this past season (by CW standards for Friday). I don't know if they're a natural pair, but I'm happy to see that the network isn't trying to put more model-related programming on to play off of ANTM.
Saturday and Sunday continue as nights for the local affiliates to program, probably the smartest thing The CW has ever done.
Elsewhere at midseason you already know about The Carrie Diaries. The other show waiting in the wings is Cult, which is about a journalist whose brother claims that a TV show (also called Cult) is trying to hurt him. When the brother goes missing the journalist goes into action, and finds a production assistant on the show who is willing to help him uncover the darker side of the show and its rabid fans.
Summing up, I suppose it's a good thing that The CW has created thematic elements to each night, and that they're reasonably distinct (with the exception of Friday, whose theme seems to be "we need to put these shows someplace"). I do think that Tuesday may be a repetitive - the main difference in them seems to be that one is set at a hospital - but Monday's stew of gossip and sex seems to work for them, so maybe I'm making something out of this that isn't there. Anyway, nothing I'm really excited about but a seeming decent offering for the network's core viewers.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Upfronts: CBS
You know when you're in a good position? When your fall schedule has as many time changes as new shows. It's good to be the king.
What's back? What's not? While most of the shows CBS cut were known, we now know for certain that CSI: Miami and Unforgettable are done.The former had been rumored for some time, the latter a case of sliding ratings as the year progressed. A Gifted Man was cut as well, which I think was pretty much expected as well. Rules of Engagement is apparently still in limbo.
What's new? Not a great deal, only four new shows on the fall schedule.
Monday leads with How I Met Your Mother, which is followed by one of the new shows, Partners. Based on the lives of its creators, it has best friends - a no-nonsense architect and his more outgoing co-worker who is gay - whose relationship is tested when the straight one gets engaged. Not the most original territory, but based on the time slot I'm guessing CBS has a lot of confidence in it.
Two Broke Girls moves to 9, where it is followed by Mike & Molly, with Hawaii 5-0 wrapping the night.
Tuesday gives us the NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles double whammy, and wraps with the new drama Vegas, which tries to catch on to the Mad Men vibe by being based on the true story of Ralph Lamb, a rancher and sheriff in 1960s Las Vegas who has to use all of his experience to corral the growing crime and sleaze, most notably in taking on a mobster who just relocated from Chicago, played by Michael Chiklis. Pan Am and The Playboy Club are cautionary tales, but I'd like to think that those lessons are now learned and this turns out to be a good show.
Wednesday is all returning shows, Survivor, Criminal Minds, and the original CSI.
Thursday leads with The Big Bang Theory, which is followed by the relocated Two and a Half Men. Person of Interest follows, and at 10 pm we have the new show Elementary, which is apparently ripping off Masterpiece Mystery by giving us a modern day setting for Sherlock Holmes. He's also moved to New York (thanks to a drug-fueled falling out in London), and his Dr. Watson is an addiction specialist (now without license) played by Lucy Liu. This could be great, but it could also crash and burn.
Friday leads with CSI: NY, which is followed by new show Made in Jersey, about a lawyer from a working class background who uses her street smarts to succeed where her colleagues can only rely on their Ivy League pedigrees. Meh. The night ends with Blue Bloods.
Saturday continues the them from Friday with two hours of Crimetime Saturday and an hour of 48 Hours Mystery.
Sunday brings back the usual lineup of 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race, and The Good Wife. At 10 we have The Mentalist, creating yet another solid night of programming.
Elsewhere at midseason you have a drama called Golden Boy about the youngest commissioner in NYPD history and how he got to the top post. On the comedy side there's Friend Me, where friends from Indiana move to LA and take different paths to making friends (one in person, on online). One posts a notice for new friends at a coffee house, with the expected results. There's also a reality show, The Job, where contestants try to get hired by major companies, kind of a hybrid of The Apprentice and Shark Tank.
Summing up, CBS benefits from being out in front. They don't have to roll out as many new shows, and they can move around existing ones to build strength. That being said, they're also taking some risks with the new shows (Elementary and Vegas, for example), which will set them up for years if they're done right.
What's back? What's not? While most of the shows CBS cut were known, we now know for certain that CSI: Miami and Unforgettable are done.The former had been rumored for some time, the latter a case of sliding ratings as the year progressed. A Gifted Man was cut as well, which I think was pretty much expected as well. Rules of Engagement is apparently still in limbo.
What's new? Not a great deal, only four new shows on the fall schedule.
Monday leads with How I Met Your Mother, which is followed by one of the new shows, Partners. Based on the lives of its creators, it has best friends - a no-nonsense architect and his more outgoing co-worker who is gay - whose relationship is tested when the straight one gets engaged. Not the most original territory, but based on the time slot I'm guessing CBS has a lot of confidence in it.
Two Broke Girls moves to 9, where it is followed by Mike & Molly, with Hawaii 5-0 wrapping the night.
Tuesday gives us the NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles double whammy, and wraps with the new drama Vegas, which tries to catch on to the Mad Men vibe by being based on the true story of Ralph Lamb, a rancher and sheriff in 1960s Las Vegas who has to use all of his experience to corral the growing crime and sleaze, most notably in taking on a mobster who just relocated from Chicago, played by Michael Chiklis. Pan Am and The Playboy Club are cautionary tales, but I'd like to think that those lessons are now learned and this turns out to be a good show.
Wednesday is all returning shows, Survivor, Criminal Minds, and the original CSI.
Thursday leads with The Big Bang Theory, which is followed by the relocated Two and a Half Men. Person of Interest follows, and at 10 pm we have the new show Elementary, which is apparently ripping off Masterpiece Mystery by giving us a modern day setting for Sherlock Holmes. He's also moved to New York (thanks to a drug-fueled falling out in London), and his Dr. Watson is an addiction specialist (now without license) played by Lucy Liu. This could be great, but it could also crash and burn.
Friday leads with CSI: NY, which is followed by new show Made in Jersey, about a lawyer from a working class background who uses her street smarts to succeed where her colleagues can only rely on their Ivy League pedigrees. Meh. The night ends with Blue Bloods.
Saturday continues the them from Friday with two hours of Crimetime Saturday and an hour of 48 Hours Mystery.
Sunday brings back the usual lineup of 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race, and The Good Wife. At 10 we have The Mentalist, creating yet another solid night of programming.
Elsewhere at midseason you have a drama called Golden Boy about the youngest commissioner in NYPD history and how he got to the top post. On the comedy side there's Friend Me, where friends from Indiana move to LA and take different paths to making friends (one in person, on online). One posts a notice for new friends at a coffee house, with the expected results. There's also a reality show, The Job, where contestants try to get hired by major companies, kind of a hybrid of The Apprentice and Shark Tank.
Summing up, CBS benefits from being out in front. They don't have to roll out as many new shows, and they can move around existing ones to build strength. That being said, they're also taking some risks with the new shows (Elementary and Vegas, for example), which will set them up for years if they're done right.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Upfronts: ABC
A little retooling with ABC, but not too much.
What's Back? What's Not? ABC brought back two mideason shows - Don't Trust the B---- in Apt 23 and Scandal, but not The River or GCB (or, as we're still thankful for, Work It). Pan Am got the expected axe as well, not sure why the network let it linger for as long as it did. There's no Cougar Town, either, but it's hardly surprising as the news has been out for a while that it's likely heading to TBS.
What's New? There appear to be seven new shows on the schedule, evenly mixed between comedy and drama.
Monday brings nothing new, with two hours of Dancing With the Stars (fall) and The Bachelor (spring) leading into Castle. Boring but steady performers, as long as the bottom doesn't drop out of either reality show.
Tuesday leads with the DWTS results show, which leads into relocated Happy Endings and Don't Trust the B---- in Apt 23 at 9, with Private Practice taking the 10 pm slot. Private Practice seems to have settled in to its slot, but there's talk this might be the show's final season (with only 13 episodes ordered to boot).
Two new sitcoms replace the results show in the spring. The first is How to Live With Your Parents (For the Rest of Your Life), which stars Sarah Chalke as a single mom who moves back in with her parents (played by Elizabeth Perkins and Brad Garrett). Cross-generational hilarity will hopefully ensue. The other show is The Family Tools, about a son who takes over a handyman business from his ailing dad (J.K. Simmons, apparently getting comedy cred for his Farmers Insurance ads), and the family that's waiting for the son to fail based on his shaky employment history. I'm catching a bit of an Arrested Development vibe from the press release, which might be worth something if (a) the show actually shares this vibe, and (b) the actual Arrested Development wasn't coming back (even if just to Netflix).
Interesting sitcom battle brewing on Tuesdays,especially between the two hour blocks here and on Fox.
Wednesday starts with three returning sitcoms - The Middle, Suburgatory, and Modern Family. At 10 pm we have Nashville, an All About Eve-inspired drama where an established country music star waning in popularity (Connie Britton) is set up to tour with an up and coming singer (Hayden Panettiere) in an attempt to use the newcomer's fanbase to reinvigorate her own. The newbie, of course, sees this as her opportunity to grab the spotlight and take her place as a top performer. There's also subplots involving a songwriter and the established singer's father, who is a powerful figure in Tennessee business and politics. This could work out pretty well given the cast (the dad is played by Powers Boothe, who will hopefully be as brooding and menacing as he was on 24). It can't do any worse than the last network show called Nashville.
In between all of this at 9:30 is The Neighbors. A family moves into a gated community in New Jersey that almost never has openings (the last one was 10 years ago). Once they move in, they notice some strange things involving their neighbors, such as they all have pro athlete names. A dinner party reveals the truth: the community is made up of aliens, and the new family is the first real interaction they've had with Earthlings. Wackiness ensues as we learn about the differences (men have the babies!) and, of course, just how similar we all are.
There's high concept, and then there's geostationary orbit concept.
Thursday starts with Last Resort, a Crimson Tide meets Lost affair, where a US submarine is told to fire its nuclear missiles at Pakistan, but both the captain and the XO refuse to fire without confirmation. The sub is then fired upon, and is forced to limp to a remote island, where the crew disembarks and sets up shop while trying to figure out just what is going on.
And Andre Braugher is playing the captain? I'm in.
Grey's Anatomy returns at 9, and Scandal keeps the 10 pm slot it started in.
Should be a solid night, but once again ABC puts a show at the 8 pm hour that doesn't quite sync with the rest of the night (past examples: Flash Forward and My Generation). Third time's the charm?
Friday starts the season with Shark Tank, Primetime: What Would You Do?, and 20/20. In November, 20/20 drops off the schedule, the other two shows move one hour later, and we get sitcoms in the 8 pm hour. The first is Last Man Standing, which I expect will suffer from the move. It's followed by Malibu Country, where the freshly divorced wife (Reba, who now only goes by Reba? Did I miss her ditching her last name?) of a country music legend gathers her family and moves to Southern California to jump start her own musical career, which she put on hold to raise a family. Lily Tomlin plays her mom, and Sara Rue her new Malibu neighbor. Could be family friendly, I suppose.
Saturday brings college football, until there is no more college football, at which point we'll get reruns or dead air or something.
Sunday kick off, as it has since the Clinton administration, with America's Funniest Home Videos. This is followed by Once Upon a Time and Revenge (which seems appropriately sudsy, if a little darker, than Desperate Housewives). The 10 pm hour is taken by the new drama 666 Park Avenue, the street address of an apartment building whose residents can meet their highest (or lowest) goals, ambitions and desires, just so long as they meet the demands of the building's owner (Terry O'Quinn) and his wife (Vanessa Williams). The nature of this arrangement becomes clear when a new couple moves to New York to manage the building. Sounds like a more demonic spin on Fantasy Island, but I'll tune in just to see if O'Quinn can channel the undead John Locke.
Elsewhere at midseason Body of Proof will fit in somewhere. There's also a US version of Mistresses, widow takes on the mob drama Red Widow, and a Da Vinci Code/National Treasure clone called Zero Hour that I admit I will watch because I'm a giant nerd.
Summing up. I imagine ABC will do reasonably well as long as the veteran series hold up. At least a couple of the new dramas seem promising, making up for the sitcoms, which don't sound like much to me.
What's Back? What's Not? ABC brought back two mideason shows - Don't Trust the B---- in Apt 23 and Scandal, but not The River or GCB (or, as we're still thankful for, Work It). Pan Am got the expected axe as well, not sure why the network let it linger for as long as it did. There's no Cougar Town, either, but it's hardly surprising as the news has been out for a while that it's likely heading to TBS.
What's New? There appear to be seven new shows on the schedule, evenly mixed between comedy and drama.
Monday brings nothing new, with two hours of Dancing With the Stars (fall) and The Bachelor (spring) leading into Castle. Boring but steady performers, as long as the bottom doesn't drop out of either reality show.
Tuesday leads with the DWTS results show, which leads into relocated Happy Endings and Don't Trust the B---- in Apt 23 at 9, with Private Practice taking the 10 pm slot. Private Practice seems to have settled in to its slot, but there's talk this might be the show's final season (with only 13 episodes ordered to boot).
Two new sitcoms replace the results show in the spring. The first is How to Live With Your Parents (For the Rest of Your Life), which stars Sarah Chalke as a single mom who moves back in with her parents (played by Elizabeth Perkins and Brad Garrett). Cross-generational hilarity will hopefully ensue. The other show is The Family Tools, about a son who takes over a handyman business from his ailing dad (J.K. Simmons, apparently getting comedy cred for his Farmers Insurance ads), and the family that's waiting for the son to fail based on his shaky employment history. I'm catching a bit of an Arrested Development vibe from the press release, which might be worth something if (a) the show actually shares this vibe, and (b) the actual Arrested Development wasn't coming back (even if just to Netflix).
Interesting sitcom battle brewing on Tuesdays,especially between the two hour blocks here and on Fox.
Wednesday starts with three returning sitcoms - The Middle, Suburgatory, and Modern Family. At 10 pm we have Nashville, an All About Eve-inspired drama where an established country music star waning in popularity (Connie Britton) is set up to tour with an up and coming singer (Hayden Panettiere) in an attempt to use the newcomer's fanbase to reinvigorate her own. The newbie, of course, sees this as her opportunity to grab the spotlight and take her place as a top performer. There's also subplots involving a songwriter and the established singer's father, who is a powerful figure in Tennessee business and politics. This could work out pretty well given the cast (the dad is played by Powers Boothe, who will hopefully be as brooding and menacing as he was on 24). It can't do any worse than the last network show called Nashville.
In between all of this at 9:30 is The Neighbors. A family moves into a gated community in New Jersey that almost never has openings (the last one was 10 years ago). Once they move in, they notice some strange things involving their neighbors, such as they all have pro athlete names. A dinner party reveals the truth: the community is made up of aliens, and the new family is the first real interaction they've had with Earthlings. Wackiness ensues as we learn about the differences (men have the babies!) and, of course, just how similar we all are.
There's high concept, and then there's geostationary orbit concept.
Thursday starts with Last Resort, a Crimson Tide meets Lost affair, where a US submarine is told to fire its nuclear missiles at Pakistan, but both the captain and the XO refuse to fire without confirmation. The sub is then fired upon, and is forced to limp to a remote island, where the crew disembarks and sets up shop while trying to figure out just what is going on.
And Andre Braugher is playing the captain? I'm in.
Grey's Anatomy returns at 9, and Scandal keeps the 10 pm slot it started in.
Should be a solid night, but once again ABC puts a show at the 8 pm hour that doesn't quite sync with the rest of the night (past examples: Flash Forward and My Generation). Third time's the charm?
Friday starts the season with Shark Tank, Primetime: What Would You Do?, and 20/20. In November, 20/20 drops off the schedule, the other two shows move one hour later, and we get sitcoms in the 8 pm hour. The first is Last Man Standing, which I expect will suffer from the move. It's followed by Malibu Country, where the freshly divorced wife (Reba, who now only goes by Reba? Did I miss her ditching her last name?) of a country music legend gathers her family and moves to Southern California to jump start her own musical career, which she put on hold to raise a family. Lily Tomlin plays her mom, and Sara Rue her new Malibu neighbor. Could be family friendly, I suppose.
Saturday brings college football, until there is no more college football, at which point we'll get reruns or dead air or something.
Sunday kick off, as it has since the Clinton administration, with America's Funniest Home Videos. This is followed by Once Upon a Time and Revenge (which seems appropriately sudsy, if a little darker, than Desperate Housewives). The 10 pm hour is taken by the new drama 666 Park Avenue, the street address of an apartment building whose residents can meet their highest (or lowest) goals, ambitions and desires, just so long as they meet the demands of the building's owner (Terry O'Quinn) and his wife (Vanessa Williams). The nature of this arrangement becomes clear when a new couple moves to New York to manage the building. Sounds like a more demonic spin on Fantasy Island, but I'll tune in just to see if O'Quinn can channel the undead John Locke.
Elsewhere at midseason Body of Proof will fit in somewhere. There's also a US version of Mistresses, widow takes on the mob drama Red Widow, and a Da Vinci Code/National Treasure clone called Zero Hour that I admit I will watch because I'm a giant nerd.
Summing up. I imagine ABC will do reasonably well as long as the veteran series hold up. At least a couple of the new dramas seem promising, making up for the sitcoms, which don't sound like much to me.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Upfronts: Fox
I hate it when two networks present on the same day, especially if one of them is not The CW. You could dispense with them in about an hour over lunch at Zabar's. Seriously, journalists, suck it up and fly our Friday night. Anyway:
What's back? What's not? No huge surprises, among the returning are New Girl, Touch, and The X-Factor are back for new shows. Mobbed is back, which I guess is a surprise as I know anything about it. Most of the cancellations were known in advance, and include House, Alcatraz, Allan Gregory, Breaking In, The Finder, Terra Nova and I Hate My Teenaged Daughter.
What's new? Mostly drama, and some relocated returning shows.
Monday opens with Bones, which leads into new show The Mob Doctor, which is pretty much what it sounds like. A doctor (Jordan Spiro of My Boys) plays a doctor who has to balance her practice with honoring a family debt to a South Side Chicago outfit. That gets replaced at midseason with The Following, which stars Kevin Bacon as an ex-FBI agent brought out of retirement to track a serial killer. The show is also created by Kevin Williamson, for what that's worth. Neither concept is particularly interesting, but if handled correctly both could be done quite well. Bacon's presence will certainly help.
Tuesday will pose a problem for NBC and its plan to focus on the 9 o'clock hour. The opening hour will be reasonably strong with Raising Hope (which then has to hope that mismatched sibling sitcom Ben and Kate will hold on to enough of its lead in). At 9 we get New Girl to start things, and following that is The Mindy Project, created by and starring Mindy Kaling. She plays an OB/GYN who is trying to have it all, and failing in hopefully comedic ways. I have more faith in Kaling to pull of this Bridget Jones-style sitcom than I would with most people. It also seems like a good pairing with New Girl, both in terms of having a strong lead-in and with what I'm think the tone would be like. Maybe NBC will find that these are too female centered and have their shows flourish with guys. Not counting on it.
Wednesday will have The X-Factor (with new judges Demi Lovato and Britney Spears) in the fall and American Idol in the spring. Makes sense, and avoids any direct competition with The Voice.
Thursday will start with results shows for whichever singing program is airing on Wednesday, followed by Glee. Not sure how I feel about the move. The execs at Fox apparently wanted a four show comedy block and preferred to have it on Tuesday. That part of things I understand. Pushing Glee into what might be the most competitive hour of prime time TV I don't. Ratings flagged this season, and the current season's been pretty uneven. The folks at Fox see a chance for creative renewal based on current characters graduating and new ones joining New Directors. I just hope that (a) the show doesn't start to split time between McKinley and the grads, and (b) we aren't forced to spend even more time with people who appeared on The Glee Project.
Friday has Touch leading into the final season of Fringe. While moving to Friday is generally seen as the kiss of death, Fox sees this as an opportunity for Touch to morph into Fringe's model of success through DVR viewing (something like 70 percent of Fringe viewers time shift). From a personal standpoint, I think it's a good idea, as we DVR almost nothing on Fridays, so there's one fewer conflict to deal with.
Hell's Kitchen picks up for Fringe once it's done. Sensible, I suppose, as some of the contestants appear to be from Neptune.
Saturday offers us something called Fox Sports Saturday, which I'm guessing will feature bear bating and foxy boxing.
Sunday returns all of the animation block from last year.
Elsewhere at midseason we have The Goodwill Games, a sitcom about three siblings who reconnect after their dad dies, only to learn that their inheritance will only pay out if they stick to rules set by their dad before he died. Sounds like a laugh fest.
To sum up, I think Fox is in pretty good shape. There are strong shows mixed with the new, and each night has a theme, be it comedy, music, or "OMG, it's Kevin Bacon!"
What's back? What's not? No huge surprises, among the returning are New Girl, Touch, and The X-Factor are back for new shows. Mobbed is back, which I guess is a surprise as I know anything about it. Most of the cancellations were known in advance, and include House, Alcatraz, Allan Gregory, Breaking In, The Finder, Terra Nova and I Hate My Teenaged Daughter.
What's new? Mostly drama, and some relocated returning shows.
Monday opens with Bones, which leads into new show The Mob Doctor, which is pretty much what it sounds like. A doctor (Jordan Spiro of My Boys) plays a doctor who has to balance her practice with honoring a family debt to a South Side Chicago outfit. That gets replaced at midseason with The Following, which stars Kevin Bacon as an ex-FBI agent brought out of retirement to track a serial killer. The show is also created by Kevin Williamson, for what that's worth. Neither concept is particularly interesting, but if handled correctly both could be done quite well. Bacon's presence will certainly help.
Tuesday will pose a problem for NBC and its plan to focus on the 9 o'clock hour. The opening hour will be reasonably strong with Raising Hope (which then has to hope that mismatched sibling sitcom Ben and Kate will hold on to enough of its lead in). At 9 we get New Girl to start things, and following that is The Mindy Project, created by and starring Mindy Kaling. She plays an OB/GYN who is trying to have it all, and failing in hopefully comedic ways. I have more faith in Kaling to pull of this Bridget Jones-style sitcom than I would with most people. It also seems like a good pairing with New Girl, both in terms of having a strong lead-in and with what I'm think the tone would be like. Maybe NBC will find that these are too female centered and have their shows flourish with guys. Not counting on it.
Wednesday will have The X-Factor (with new judges Demi Lovato and Britney Spears) in the fall and American Idol in the spring. Makes sense, and avoids any direct competition with The Voice.
Thursday will start with results shows for whichever singing program is airing on Wednesday, followed by Glee. Not sure how I feel about the move. The execs at Fox apparently wanted a four show comedy block and preferred to have it on Tuesday. That part of things I understand. Pushing Glee into what might be the most competitive hour of prime time TV I don't. Ratings flagged this season, and the current season's been pretty uneven. The folks at Fox see a chance for creative renewal based on current characters graduating and new ones joining New Directors. I just hope that (a) the show doesn't start to split time between McKinley and the grads, and (b) we aren't forced to spend even more time with people who appeared on The Glee Project.
Friday has Touch leading into the final season of Fringe. While moving to Friday is generally seen as the kiss of death, Fox sees this as an opportunity for Touch to morph into Fringe's model of success through DVR viewing (something like 70 percent of Fringe viewers time shift). From a personal standpoint, I think it's a good idea, as we DVR almost nothing on Fridays, so there's one fewer conflict to deal with.
Hell's Kitchen picks up for Fringe once it's done. Sensible, I suppose, as some of the contestants appear to be from Neptune.
Saturday offers us something called Fox Sports Saturday, which I'm guessing will feature bear bating and foxy boxing.
Sunday returns all of the animation block from last year.
Elsewhere at midseason we have The Goodwill Games, a sitcom about three siblings who reconnect after their dad dies, only to learn that their inheritance will only pay out if they stick to rules set by their dad before he died. Sounds like a laugh fest.
To sum up, I think Fox is in pretty good shape. There are strong shows mixed with the new, and each night has a theme, be it comedy, music, or "OMG, it's Kevin Bacon!"
Upfronts: NBC
The TV silly season kicks off in earnest today, as NBC starts off the week of network upfronts where the hope is that advertisers, excited by the announcement of the planned 2012-13 prime time lineup, will snap up ad space. I don't get the sense that there'll be a lot of snapping for the Peacock.
What's back? What's not? The biggest surprises for me were the return of Whitney and the cancellation of Harry's Law. The former is a modest performer at best. which the latter was able to hold its own (if not rule) on Sunday nights. But as is so often the case, a show that performs modestly but pulls in younger viewers will get more of a break than one that skews older.
There are a bunch of reality/competition programs (The Biggest Loser, The Apprentice, Who Do You Think You Are?, The Sing-Off) that are not yet scheduled. But Fashion Star, which has not impressed, is back.
Kind of sad to see that Awake didn't make the cut, as I enjoyed its inventive approach, but hardly unexpected. And given the direction NBC is going in, I'd feel pretty badly if you're involved with Are You There, Chelsea?, Bent, or Best Friends Forever.
What's new? And the reason for feeling badly is that NBC is littering the schedule with comedy, strewing sitcoms over four nights of the week. The odds were in your favor if you could get a sitcom on the network, really. There's also likely some concern about replacing some of the older sitcoms, as we'll see as we go day by day:
Monday opens with The Voice, which has now proven itself enough to the network that they can run it into the ground. After two hours of singing, we turn to the latest J.J. Abrams offering, Revolution, which follows what happens if we all of a sudden no longer had electricity. It sounds a bit like the Emberverse series of sci-fi/fantasy novels by S. M. Stirling, just with less bloodshed and Wiccans, or like The Walking Dead without zombies (to which I'd say: why?). Still, I tend to give Abrams a chance (kind of liked Alcatraz).
Tuesday bring us another hour of The Voice, followed by two new sitcoms, Go On and The New Normal. Depending on your age, these will feel pretty familiar, as Go On is pretty much a reboot of Dear John and The New Normal a rip-off of Modern Family. The former starts Matthew Perry, while the latter comes from Ryan Murphy, who brought us Glee. So there's at least an outside chance that these won't suck. The night ends with Parenthood, which I'd kind of forgotten was still on.
Wednesday starts with Animal Practice, which is about a gifted but unorthodox veteranarian who works at an animal hospital now run by his ex-girlfriend, who knows business but not animals. Strange premise, I have to say, but I suppose there's an unchecked box somewhere that an animal-based office/rom-com fills. The other show is Guys With Kids, which is the billionth sitcom premised on guys trying to stay guyish while doing girlie things, like raising kids. The press release promises a scene of guys wearing Baby Bjorns to the bar, which seems about right for a show created by Jimmy Fallon.
After the 232rd season of Law & Order: SVU, we get Chicago Fire, also from Dick Wolf. As you might guess, it's about the men and women who staff a fire house in Chicago. Jesse Spencer - Chase from House - stars. Even with the Wolf pedigree I'm dubious, as firefighting shows never really work out (or perhaps I should say network firefighter shows thanks to Rescue Me).
Thursday offers a veteran line-up of 30 Rock, Up All Night, The Office, Parks and Recreation, and Rock Center. It's the last season for 30 Rock (though there was some loose talk by the NBC Entertainment head that it wasn't), could be the last season for The Office as well as the pace picks up on a Dwight-themed spinoff. Unsure why Rock Center gets the plum 10 pm spot here. Guessing it's counter-programming.
Friday starts with what is easily the biggest surprise on their schedule - Whitney. There's nothing about the show that screams renewal - ratings were easily as tepid as the other returning sitcoms, and it has none of the critical appeal of the others - but here it is. It's paired with Community, and while it's great to have that show back at all, it has to hurt to be on Friday and following what I would consider a lesser show. Even worse, Dan Harmon may be leaving, at least in part due to a falling out with Chevy Chase. Personally, I think you keep Harmon and send Chase packing, but it's obviously not that easy.
Grimm returns at 9 - the first of what will be many genre shows on Friday - and Dateline rolls along at 10.
Saturday is reruns and burn-offs. Enjoy.
Sunday is still Football Night in America, at least until January. Once the NFL wraps we get Dateline to start the night, the double whammy of Fashion Star and The Apprentice to take up the 8 and 9 o'clock hours, and then what might be the most interesting new offering at 10, Do No Harm. It's a modern version of the Jekyll and Hyde story, which strikes me as a little dark and serious for Sunday nights (at least on network). Personally, I'd put this show on Thursday, move Rock Center to Tuesdays and put Parenthood here, assuming they could all start at the new days and times. Of course, Do No Harm might suck and leave a big hole on Thursdays. OK, bigger hole.
Elsewhere at midseason I'd keep an eye out for Hannibal, a drama about the famed Carthaginian general and statesman. OK, it's a TV version of the Hannibal Lecter story, but wouldn't it be great if it was a historical drama in the style of Rome? Instead, we get this attempt to grab at Dexter's audience.
Among the midseason sitcoms worth noting are Next Caller, starring Dane Cook as some sort of shock jock who gets paired with (and I quote the press release) a "chipper NPR feminist." Ugh. There's also 1600 Penn, a family sitcom where the dad just happens to be the President. Bill Pullman stars, and I think I'd rather see Houston get vaporized under his watch again than see this.
To sum up, NBC's continued attempt to rebuild doesn't do much for me. Rebuilding around comedy is an idea only as good as the shows, and I don't think they're strong enough, especially if Whitney is one of the shows you're going to war with.
What's back? What's not? The biggest surprises for me were the return of Whitney and the cancellation of Harry's Law. The former is a modest performer at best. which the latter was able to hold its own (if not rule) on Sunday nights. But as is so often the case, a show that performs modestly but pulls in younger viewers will get more of a break than one that skews older.
There are a bunch of reality/competition programs (The Biggest Loser, The Apprentice, Who Do You Think You Are?, The Sing-Off) that are not yet scheduled. But Fashion Star, which has not impressed, is back.
Kind of sad to see that Awake didn't make the cut, as I enjoyed its inventive approach, but hardly unexpected. And given the direction NBC is going in, I'd feel pretty badly if you're involved with Are You There, Chelsea?, Bent, or Best Friends Forever.
What's new? And the reason for feeling badly is that NBC is littering the schedule with comedy, strewing sitcoms over four nights of the week. The odds were in your favor if you could get a sitcom on the network, really. There's also likely some concern about replacing some of the older sitcoms, as we'll see as we go day by day:
Monday opens with The Voice, which has now proven itself enough to the network that they can run it into the ground. After two hours of singing, we turn to the latest J.J. Abrams offering, Revolution, which follows what happens if we all of a sudden no longer had electricity. It sounds a bit like the Emberverse series of sci-fi/fantasy novels by S. M. Stirling, just with less bloodshed and Wiccans, or like The Walking Dead without zombies (to which I'd say: why?). Still, I tend to give Abrams a chance (kind of liked Alcatraz).
Tuesday bring us another hour of The Voice, followed by two new sitcoms, Go On and The New Normal. Depending on your age, these will feel pretty familiar, as Go On is pretty much a reboot of Dear John and The New Normal a rip-off of Modern Family. The former starts Matthew Perry, while the latter comes from Ryan Murphy, who brought us Glee. So there's at least an outside chance that these won't suck. The night ends with Parenthood, which I'd kind of forgotten was still on.
Wednesday starts with Animal Practice, which is about a gifted but unorthodox veteranarian who works at an animal hospital now run by his ex-girlfriend, who knows business but not animals. Strange premise, I have to say, but I suppose there's an unchecked box somewhere that an animal-based office/rom-com fills. The other show is Guys With Kids, which is the billionth sitcom premised on guys trying to stay guyish while doing girlie things, like raising kids. The press release promises a scene of guys wearing Baby Bjorns to the bar, which seems about right for a show created by Jimmy Fallon.
After the 232rd season of Law & Order: SVU, we get Chicago Fire, also from Dick Wolf. As you might guess, it's about the men and women who staff a fire house in Chicago. Jesse Spencer - Chase from House - stars. Even with the Wolf pedigree I'm dubious, as firefighting shows never really work out (or perhaps I should say network firefighter shows thanks to Rescue Me).
Thursday offers a veteran line-up of 30 Rock, Up All Night, The Office, Parks and Recreation, and Rock Center. It's the last season for 30 Rock (though there was some loose talk by the NBC Entertainment head that it wasn't), could be the last season for The Office as well as the pace picks up on a Dwight-themed spinoff. Unsure why Rock Center gets the plum 10 pm spot here. Guessing it's counter-programming.
Friday starts with what is easily the biggest surprise on their schedule - Whitney. There's nothing about the show that screams renewal - ratings were easily as tepid as the other returning sitcoms, and it has none of the critical appeal of the others - but here it is. It's paired with Community, and while it's great to have that show back at all, it has to hurt to be on Friday and following what I would consider a lesser show. Even worse, Dan Harmon may be leaving, at least in part due to a falling out with Chevy Chase. Personally, I think you keep Harmon and send Chase packing, but it's obviously not that easy.
Grimm returns at 9 - the first of what will be many genre shows on Friday - and Dateline rolls along at 10.
Saturday is reruns and burn-offs. Enjoy.
Sunday is still Football Night in America, at least until January. Once the NFL wraps we get Dateline to start the night, the double whammy of Fashion Star and The Apprentice to take up the 8 and 9 o'clock hours, and then what might be the most interesting new offering at 10, Do No Harm. It's a modern version of the Jekyll and Hyde story, which strikes me as a little dark and serious for Sunday nights (at least on network). Personally, I'd put this show on Thursday, move Rock Center to Tuesdays and put Parenthood here, assuming they could all start at the new days and times. Of course, Do No Harm might suck and leave a big hole on Thursdays. OK, bigger hole.
Elsewhere at midseason I'd keep an eye out for Hannibal, a drama about the famed Carthaginian general and statesman. OK, it's a TV version of the Hannibal Lecter story, but wouldn't it be great if it was a historical drama in the style of Rome? Instead, we get this attempt to grab at Dexter's audience.
Among the midseason sitcoms worth noting are Next Caller, starring Dane Cook as some sort of shock jock who gets paired with (and I quote the press release) a "chipper NPR feminist." Ugh. There's also 1600 Penn, a family sitcom where the dad just happens to be the President. Bill Pullman stars, and I think I'd rather see Houston get vaporized under his watch again than see this.
To sum up, NBC's continued attempt to rebuild doesn't do much for me. Rebuilding around comedy is an idea only as good as the shows, and I don't think they're strong enough, especially if Whitney is one of the shows you're going to war with.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Upfronts: The CW
And last but, well, least, The CW.
Returning Shows - No real surprises, other than Nikita getting renewed and moved to Friday. Other stuff has shifted by an hour but stayed on the same day. One Tree Hill returns in the spring for what seems to be its 28th season.
New Shows:
Monday - Gossip Girl moves up an hour and will be followed by Hart of Dixie, named to bring in all those tween pun enthusiasts. Rachel Bilson stars as a new doctor whose plans to become a surgeon fall through, so she takes a job with a doctor in Alabama. She gets down there only to learn that the guy who hired her died, but he left half his practice to her in his will. The other half goes to the town's other doctor, who doesn't like the competition. Turns out his daughter doesn't care for competition, either, as the young doctor finds an ally in the daughter's fiance.
Not sure if this is more Doc Hollywood or Sweet Home Alabama. Either way, this isn't the worst show the network is trotting out next season.
Tuesday - Sarah Michelle Gellar returns (well, sort of, as she was on The WB and UPN but not the merged network) in Ringer. Here she plays Bridget, a woman who is the sole witness to a professional hit. Fearing for her life, she runs and reconnects with her estranged twin sister, and when the sister mysteriously disappears, Bridget adopts her sister's persona - only to learn that her life is no bed of roses, either.
I suppose this could work, though I can't help but think of Lone Star with its one person/two lives set-up. Though I guess that's a nice low bar to clear as a measure of success.
Wednesday - Going back to the last comment I made about Hart of Dixie, this night features what looks like the clear loser of the new shows, H8R, and it's not just because its name is in textspeak. The premise of the show is that celebrities will meet some of their greatest detractors and work to turn them into fans (or at least have them stop being haters). I'm assuming the celebrities will be CW-type personalities that you've likely not heard of if you're over 23.
Mario Lopez hosts, probably wishing he could go back to Pet Star.
Thursday - Secret Circle brings us witches to follow vampires, which I guess makes a certain amount of sense. A girl loses her mother in a fire and is taken in by her grandmother. The girl learns that her new town (where her mom grew up) is actually inhabited by witches, and her return will allow them to form a new circle. As she discovers her powers, she learns that there are other forces at play in town, and that her mother's death may not have been accidental. Regardless of this mumbo jumbo, I suspect that as long as the teen boys on the show are sullen and shirtless, the show will do OK.
No new shows on Friday, and of course no programming at all on the weekend.
Two new shows for mid-season. The first is Re-Modeled, The CW's millionth attempt to launch another fashion-themed show to go with ANTM. Some fashion guy is working to pull smaller modeling agencies together so that they don't get screwed (by whom I don't know, the larger agencies?), and in the process the models themselves get greater control of their careers and health (through a mechanism not yet explained). Whatever.
The other show, The Frame, is some sort of Big Brother rip-off where pairs of contestants are put into some sort of restricted living space (the "frame") and only interact with other pairs remotely. The description says the contestants have "dynamic personalities," which to my mind sounds like they'll all be braying jackasses.
Returning Shows - No real surprises, other than Nikita getting renewed and moved to Friday. Other stuff has shifted by an hour but stayed on the same day. One Tree Hill returns in the spring for what seems to be its 28th season.
New Shows:
Monday - Gossip Girl moves up an hour and will be followed by Hart of Dixie, named to bring in all those tween pun enthusiasts. Rachel Bilson stars as a new doctor whose plans to become a surgeon fall through, so she takes a job with a doctor in Alabama. She gets down there only to learn that the guy who hired her died, but he left half his practice to her in his will. The other half goes to the town's other doctor, who doesn't like the competition. Turns out his daughter doesn't care for competition, either, as the young doctor finds an ally in the daughter's fiance.
Not sure if this is more Doc Hollywood or Sweet Home Alabama. Either way, this isn't the worst show the network is trotting out next season.
Tuesday - Sarah Michelle Gellar returns (well, sort of, as she was on The WB and UPN but not the merged network) in Ringer. Here she plays Bridget, a woman who is the sole witness to a professional hit. Fearing for her life, she runs and reconnects with her estranged twin sister, and when the sister mysteriously disappears, Bridget adopts her sister's persona - only to learn that her life is no bed of roses, either.
I suppose this could work, though I can't help but think of Lone Star with its one person/two lives set-up. Though I guess that's a nice low bar to clear as a measure of success.
Wednesday - Going back to the last comment I made about Hart of Dixie, this night features what looks like the clear loser of the new shows, H8R, and it's not just because its name is in textspeak. The premise of the show is that celebrities will meet some of their greatest detractors and work to turn them into fans (or at least have them stop being haters). I'm assuming the celebrities will be CW-type personalities that you've likely not heard of if you're over 23.
Mario Lopez hosts, probably wishing he could go back to Pet Star.
Thursday - Secret Circle brings us witches to follow vampires, which I guess makes a certain amount of sense. A girl loses her mother in a fire and is taken in by her grandmother. The girl learns that her new town (where her mom grew up) is actually inhabited by witches, and her return will allow them to form a new circle. As she discovers her powers, she learns that there are other forces at play in town, and that her mother's death may not have been accidental. Regardless of this mumbo jumbo, I suspect that as long as the teen boys on the show are sullen and shirtless, the show will do OK.
No new shows on Friday, and of course no programming at all on the weekend.
Two new shows for mid-season. The first is Re-Modeled, The CW's millionth attempt to launch another fashion-themed show to go with ANTM. Some fashion guy is working to pull smaller modeling agencies together so that they don't get screwed (by whom I don't know, the larger agencies?), and in the process the models themselves get greater control of their careers and health (through a mechanism not yet explained). Whatever.
The other show, The Frame, is some sort of Big Brother rip-off where pairs of contestants are put into some sort of restricted living space (the "frame") and only interact with other pairs remotely. The description says the contestants have "dynamic personalities," which to my mind sounds like they'll all be braying jackasses.
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