Posted Jul 3rd 2009 10:32AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Law and Order, Casting, Reality-Free
More good news out of NBC's top drama.
Wentworth Miller is guesting on Law and Order: SVU, and this time he's not going to be behind bars. The
Prison Break actor will star in the September 23 premiere of
Law and Order: SVU, which is kicking off its 11th season on the NBC.
Wentworth Miller's casting comes on the heels of
NBC re-signing of Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni to two-year extensions as the show's mainstays, Detectives Benson and Stabler, as well as the return of Stephanie March as Alex Cabot and a four-show arc for Christine Lahti. I'd say that the powers-that-be are stacking the deck with prime talent to make sure
Law and Order: SVU maintains its top quality status.
Continue reading Wentworth Miller goes from Prison Break to Law & Order: SVU
Posted Jun 30th 2009 3:25PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Law and Order, Reality-Free
Well, that's a relief. After months of speculation that NBC would be bringing
Law & Order: SVU back for the 11th season without the two stars that have anchored the show, there's good news.
Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have re-signed with
SVU. They pair agreed to stick with NBC's top-rated Neilsen drama for two more seasons.
Good news is probably an understatement. It's really great news because with
SVU moving to Wednesday, 9 p.m., the show really didn't need to shake up the cast at this point in time. Stability mattered and NBC found a way to bring the two stars into the fold, offering them both the flexibility they sought.
Continue reading Meloni & Hargitay sign on for more Law & Order: SVU
Posted Jun 29th 2009 12:05PM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: OpEd, Law and Order, Casting, Reality-Free
When Chris Noth left
Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Jeff Goldblum was announced as his replacement, I was kind of excited. I'm a fan of Goldblum's, and he's always entertaining, whether he's a guest on a talk show or doing something decidedly strange like his guest spot on
Tim and Eric: Awesome Show, Great Job!So far, not so good. Last night's episode, which tried to weave together the stories of a washed-up celebrity chef, a hip hop mogul, and a flighty socialite, still didn't provide the punch I was hoping for. It was better than most of his episodes so far - and a good deal better than his first episode. And there are some elements I like; Goldblum's Detective Zack Nichols can't seem to keep from correcting his co-workers, seemingly with no ill will, but irritating them in the process.
Continue reading Waiting on Jeff Goldblum and Criminal Intent
Posted Jun 29th 2009 8:08AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
Not sure why USA Network ran two new episodes of
Law and Order: CI back to back last night. Since the show was delayed so much this season you would think they'd want to spread out the fresh episodes over the summer longer. But we got to see a Jeff Goldblum episode and a Vincent D'Onofrio episode on the same night so we can compare the two leading men.
Posted Jun 8th 2009 9:04AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
"Folie a Deux" was also the name of one of my favorite
X-Files episodes, the one where the telemarketing boss was also an evil creature (as someone who worked a few telemarketing jobs, that episode seemed more like a documentary to me).
This was a Goren/Eames episode. Is it just me or does D'Onofrio look more and more unhealthy/disheveled? I know, I know, it's part of his character arc, but still...
Posted Jun 4th 2009 10:10AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: News, OpEd, Law and Order, Celebrities, Ratings, Reality-Free, Celebreality
If Jay Leno isn't the answer for NBC prime time, perhaps the network should think about booking President Obama. NBC News devoted two hours, on Tuesday and Wednesday night, for
Inside the Obama White House and the
ratings were strong. Better than the insipid
I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, which acted as a lead-in. Of course the season finale of
Law & Order: SVU on Tuesday didn't hurt the news production.
Having watched the two hours, NBC should sign the president ASAP. There's always the curiosity factor when a viewer is being given access behind the scenes, and that's what
Inside the Obama White House did. It was a look at the real West Wing, which reminded me a lot of the fictional, Aaron Sorkin
West Wing creation, and that was quite cool. President Obama still fascinates me, and
it's well past 100 days.Continue reading NBC scores with Inside the Obama White House
Posted Jun 4th 2009 8:08AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
I haven't warmed up to Jeremy Sisto and Anthony Anderson, but I still like the second half of the
Law and Order team. This season finale was ... convoluted. I was lost about 20 minutes into it, even after McCoy went to the board and literally drew a graphic for the audience to explain what was going on. In short, an S&M murder case led back to Tom Everett Scott's governor character and his wife, and hinted at an interesting race next season (which will see the show on at a new day and time, Friday at 8 PM).
What did everyone else think?
Posted Jun 3rd 2009 12:30PM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: Law and Order, Casting, Reality-Free
"You always made me feel safe, John."
Perfect. Beautiful. That line was delivered by Carol Kane to Richard Belzer on last night's season finale of
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. A bit of history. Kane played Gwen Munch, the conspiracy-minded ex-wife of Belzer's Detective John Munch. The last time the two of them played those roles was more than a decade ago, not even on the same show.
When last Detective Munch fans saw the pairing, it was in 1997 on
Homicide: Life on the Street. And they picked one hell of an episode to bring her back. Fans of Belzer know he was having fun with the black helicopter crowd before he brought that particular obsession to his character, and last night's episode was tailor-made for him, even if he wasn't really in the forefront of the plot.
Continue reading Carol Kane and Richard Belzer - Together again on Law & Order: SVU
Posted Jun 3rd 2009 8:00AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
Wow, I gotta say that this was a great season finale. I wasn't really familiar with Stuckey, but what happened still shocked me (though I guessed what was going on halfway through). It was rather
Bones-ian, in a way.
This could turn out to be the last episode of
Law and Order: SVU for Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay, since
they are holding out for more money and NBC is thinking of replacing them. Of course, I don't think that's going to happen. Sure, all of the
Law and Order shows have had many cast members over the years, but I'm betting that the duo will be back for another season.
Posted Jun 1st 2009 8:03AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
So...are you a D'Onofrio (Goren) fan or a Goldblum (Nicols) fan? I'm wondering if this "Goldblum this week, D'Onofrio next week" format is irritating longtime fans, or if longtime fans like having Goldblum in the mix too. Will they ever have Goldblum investigate a case with Kathryn Erbe?
Last night was a Nichols/Wheeler episode, with the duo investigating the death of a con man's partner.
Posted May 19th 2009 6:08PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Law and Order, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
I figured they would do this, for nostalgia's sake if nothing else. It seems pretty likely that
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is going to outlast the parent that spawned it (because let's face it, sex sells!). Still, it was nice of
NBC to renew Law & Order for a 20th season, allowing Dick Wolf to match
Gunsmoke at twenty seasons.
Of course, now he's going to be angling to surpass the series next year. Even more ambitious would be a push to outdo
Gunsmoke in episodes. With word coming down that
L&O got a 16 episode commitment, it's just falling further and further behind.
Continue reading Law & Order matches Gunsmoke's longevity record, sort of
Posted May 19th 2009 12:56PM by Kona Gallagher
Filed under: Industry, Programming, The Apprentice, Law and Order, Saturday Night Live, The Office, Heroes, Pickups and Renewals, Friday Night Lights, Upfronts, Chuck, Reality-Free, America's Got Talent, Parks and Recreation
NBC has been leaking like a sieve for weeks, so other than a few on-the-bubble cancellations, there aren't any huge surprises in their official upfront announcement. The big change is that they're doing two official seasons. A lot of the networks have been doing this unofficially, but NBC seems to be one of the few that is putting a label on it.
Returning: Heroes, The Biggest Loser, Law & Order: SVU, Saturday Night Live, SNL: Weekend Update Thursday, Parks and Recreation, The Office, Law & Order, Southland, Dateline NBC
Returning mid-season: Chuck, 30 Rock, The Celebrity ApprenticeGone: Life, Medium, My Name is Earl, Kath & Kim,
Kings,
Knight Rider
New: Trauma, The Jay Leno Show, Parenthood, Community.
New for mid-season: Day One, 100 Questions, Mercy, The Marriage Ref
Not reflected on the schedule, but will be returning in the summer: America's Got Talent,
Friday Night Lights (which will once again be aired first on Direct TV).
Watch this space for more details on the new shows...
More on the schedule and comments after the jump.
Continue reading The Upfronts: NBC
Posted May 12th 2009 3:01PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Programming, Law and Order, Pickups and Renewals, Chuck, Reality-Free
If there's a seven-figure penalty clause attached to your pilot if the network doesn't pick it up for series, how much does it have to suck ass if the net says, "Yeah, we'll pay the penalty rather than put that piece of crap on the air." That's what Warner Bros. is hearing as
NBC has passed on Legally Mad.
This is David E. Kelley's much ballyhooed next legal drama starring Kristin Chenoweth and Loretta Devine. See that's good talent right there and still they'd rather pay millions than put it on the air? Damn!
Continue reading NBC would rather pay a huge penalty than air Legally Mad
Posted May 11th 2009 9:32AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Law and Order, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
Whoa, there's a confusing headline. Is it
Law and Order: CI or is it
In Treatment?! It's
Law and Order: CI with an episode titled "In Treatment." Damn you, confusing episode title-makers! I can't wait for a show to have an episode titled "Open Thread." This was the second Jeff Goldblum episode (he's trading off each week with Vincent D'Onofrio - I still want to see both of them investigate a case together). What did everyone think?
Posted May 6th 2009 11:03AM by Isabelle Carreau
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Reality Shows, Programming, American Idol, CSI, Law and Order, Survivor, Grey's Anatomy, Cancellations, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free, TV Squad Ten
Earlier this week, I let you know of
the ten shows I thought should be renewed. Now it's time to reverse the question and think about the shows that shouldn't be renewed. Yes, there are some shows that should end now, either because they have annoying characters (*cough* Meredith Grey *cough*), are not treated properly by their network (insert here pretty much all shows on FOX), have been on TV for too long and have a hard time being original (I'm talking about you
Survivor), etc.
ER would have been a prime candidate for this list, but NBC finally made the right decision and ended the show a few weeks ago. Note that my list includes some shows that have received early renewals. Still, I think they should be canceled asap. So what other shows, besides
ER, I think should bite the dust? Let's find out!
If you just want the list, click here.Continue reading TV Squad Ten: Series that should be canceled
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TV Squad previews NBC's new shows (part 1)
TV 101: How ESPN controls the world and what the other networks can learn from it
TV Squad previews CBS's new shows
