The fate of ABC's Women's Murder Club has been determined...at least for the rest of this season. After a shake-up in the production team early this month which resulted in co-creators/producers Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain, as well and exec-producer R. Scott Gemmill, all being dispatched, Robert Nathan (Law and Order) has been named showrunner. Nathan will produce three more original episodes this season to be aired as early as April. This is good news for fans of the femme detective series based on crime novelist James Pattersons' bestsellers. The hour drama premiered last October to generally poor reviews, but did well enough in the Nielsens to encourage ABC that they might have a hit on their hands. As the week's passed, the ratings dipped. The ten episodes that aired averaged a 6.1 rating/11 share; 38th place overall. Not gangbusters, but pretty good.
In a year of shows about female friend -- Cashmere Mafia, Lipstick Jungle -- Women's Murder Club was a hybrid of sorts. It mixed the girlfriend bonding idea with the procedural drama. The WMC foursome include a homicide detective (Angie Harmon), a medical examiner (Paula Newsome), a D.A. (Laura Harris) and a newspaper reporter (Aubrey Dollar), all best friends who get together to crack the toughest homicides in San Francisco. Implausible, perhaps, but the show has a loyal following and they'll be happy to hear about the three fresh episodes to come. Still to be determined is whether or not ABC has decided to give the Club a pick up for next season.
The Upfronts: FOX
Carter Bays of How I Met Your Mother: The TV Squad Interview
The Upfronts: CBS
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-24-2008 @ 2:30PM
Chuck said...
Yes! Women's Murder Club was one of the few of the new series I really watched. Good news about a good show.
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2-24-2008 @ 3:31PM
Jo said...
Please keep Women's Murder Club, it is one of the best new shows this year. Actually there is not much to offer anymore and this was a welcome surprise
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2-24-2008 @ 3:40PM
Lazarus said...
Any word on why specifically Craft & Fain are gone? I only tuned in to this show because I enjoyed their work on "Angel." If they're gone from the show then I guess that clears up some space on my TiVo...
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2-24-2008 @ 5:18PM
Dan Chichian said...
Good news. This is one of the few shows I look forward to on Friday night.
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2-24-2008 @ 5:27PM
C C said...
It would be a stupid move on ABC's part if they let this show go. It's a solid show with a likeable cast, and it's a procedural-a safe bet. I don't see it ever becoming a major hit, but it would be a reliable performer.
Of course, we're talking about the networks here-they have no foresight. And I'm getting the feeling the nets are dumping their marginally performing series across the board as a result of the writer's strike. I suspect they will try to fill as much airtime next season as they can with cheaper reality shows.
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2-24-2008 @ 5:42PM
Steve Ungrey said...
I think Craft and Fain's deal was one of those ABC canned during the strike, thinking the strike would last longer than it did.
Still, this sounds promising. WMC's new showrunner supposedly has experience dealing with Angie on Law and Order.
ABC best tread lightly with this series. I have a feeling there will be plenty of pissed off people (including myself) if this show is canceled.
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2-24-2008 @ 7:55PM
Jimmy said...
This is not a horrible show, but neither is it great television. I've heard rumors they want to make the series more Angie Harmon-centric (who was wrongly cast as the lead, I might add), which I think would be a mistake. This series has a great cast, shockingly enough a great cast of lead women, but I think it needs a better time slot than the doomed Friday night. This series would make a great follow-up to Grey's Anatomy, making ABC Thursday ladies night. This series could also use with some better writing; maybe the new guy can help that. I guess if we want this series to continue we need to watch it; and get our friends to watch.
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2-24-2008 @ 9:09PM
Jan said...
I am glad that Women's Murder Club will continue for atleast 3 more episodes. I really like the show and look forward to it on Friday nights. Thanks
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2-25-2008 @ 4:13AM
shaygb said...
IMHO, what drags WMC down is the ex-husband angle. I have never read the Pattison's novel but to me the attraction just doesn't gel. It may have read well as the road not taken but it hasn't translated into the tv series. The four female leads are terrific and have worked off each other very well from the first episode. The writing is average but if the writers play to the strengths of the actresses and not be concerned with the constraints of Pattison's characters, I think they would have a fine television series.
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2-27-2008 @ 8:50PM
Michael white said...
I thought the show was really enjoyable. I find it perplexing, having created a cast with such great chemistry, and stories believable and entertaining.
Having never read any of James Patterson's books, I can't speak to how much they contributed to the story lines, but I would certainly hope the show is renewed, and given a time period that will expose a broader range of viewers to it.
Michael White, NYC
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3-03-2008 @ 5:52PM
demeter94 said...
Join the club! Help save WMC for a second season. http://www.mariskahargitay.org/save_wmc/
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