ArmyWives-related stories
Posted Oct 12th 2009 4:03AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S03E18) Army Wives is the highest rated series in the history of Lifetime, and this season has done little to infringe on the show's popularity. For me, though, this past season has been a bit of a drag... until tonight's dramatic finale. In the tradition of the show, cliffhanger endings are its specialty and more than a few lives were torn asunder by the time the credits rolled on tonight's show.
There's a lot up in the air going into next season (which
has already been ordered by Lifetime, so don't worry about these storylines not being resolved). Before looking at the couples, one by one, overall I think
Army Wives could use some shaking up. There's a bit of complacency setting in, but more on that and the couples after the jump.
Continue reading Army Wives: Fields of Fire (season finale)
Posted Aug 10th 2009 3:02PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Industry, Ratings, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
A lot of times, the news about ratings isn't good. Or not good enough, so shows that you care about have to hope for the kindness of TV executives to give that show more time to improve or find a new time slot or something ... just to survive. That's why it's such a pleasure that
Burn Notice did great in the ratings for the summer season finale last Thursday. According to the numbers, 7.6 million total viewers were glued to the set, the most eyeballs for any scripted TV shows that night.
Continue reading Great news for Burn Notice
Posted Jul 9th 2009 10:16AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Early Looks, Reality-Free
Certain shows seem to be perfect for certain television networks. That's the point of programming, no doubt, and Lifetime has done a good job filling their female-centric niche with TV movies and series like
Army Wives. That said, I think there will soon be a new favorite on Lifetime and it's called
Drop Dead Diva. It's chick-flick, rom-com for weekly TV viewers, and while men might enjoy the whimsical plot and attractive characters, this is a show that ladies will adore.
If you were talking high concept like a Hollywood pitchman, you could describe
Drop Dead Diva as
Ally McBeal for the Lane Bryant set. Or maybe it's Sara Lee meets
Heaven Can Wait. However, you put it,
Drop Dead Diva is a switcheroo story about a vapid, but lovable, gorgeous size 2 model who dies at the exact same time as a brilliant, generous size 16 workaholic attorney, and in one of those wonderful Hollywood comedy devices, shallow Deb's spirit winds up in good Jane's body.
Continue reading Drop Dead Diva -- An early look
Posted Feb 25th 2009 11:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
There are two significant things to take from the news that
Army Wives will return for a fourth season. One, the predominantly female viewership of Lifetime has embraced the series about the lives of Army personnel and their families on the Fort Marshall post in Charleston, South Carolina; and two, scripted dramas are on the rise all across the cable networks. It also means that this finely acted, well-written and well produced show is going to be around for the next couple of years at least.
Continue reading Lifetime drafts Army Wives for season four
Posted Sep 15th 2008 7:25AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Army Wives
(S02E13) There was a lot of action is this penultimate episode of
Army Wives. After the ripples created by all these stones in the water, I expect that next week's season finale will be a humdinger, although I don't think the finale can equal the punch of last year's suicide bomber at the Hump Bar.
It's clear that the writers like to keep us on our toes, surprising us, and I don't mind the unexpected. But the twist in tonight's show really came out of left field. I'll be frank; it was bad. I won't talk about it further until after the jump, but suffice to say I felt very manipulated, and not in a good way.
The Trevor/Roxy drug story has been building and it's definitely coming to a realistic boil. I feel for Roxy. She's doing her best to keep it together and Trevor has been like another person since returning from Iraq, guilt ridden and injured.
Continue reading Army Wives: Safe Havens
Posted Aug 21st 2008 1:03PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Pickups and Renewals
Not to be confused with
Cashmere Mafia or
Legally Blonde or
Sweet Charity, Lifetime has a new reality series in the works with the catchy title of
Blonde Charity Mafia. It's a docu-reality series, so they say.
Lifetime has ordered six half-hour episodes of Blonde Charity Mafia, following the lives of three young society women in Washington, D.C
. who are famous for their work on political and philanthropic fundraisers in the nation's capital. If this sounds something like the Bravo
Real Houswives franchise --
Real Housewives of Orange County, Real Housewives of New York and
Real Housewives of Atlanta -- it's all intentional.
The
Blonde Charity Mafia mavens may not be married ladies, but the very rich, society swirl sounds very much like the well-heeled women on Bravo.
Continue reading Lifetime says yes to high society reality show
Posted Aug 16th 2008 10:01AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E11) Roger and Susan finally had that moment. After eleven episodes, when he showed up in her kitchen and said what we've been waiting to hear him say -- "I love you, Susan" -- it was cathartic. Done to the tune of Carole King singing, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?"
Swingtown grabbed me by the throat, leaving me dying to see what would happen next. Only that was the end of the show.
I guess that's a good thing, being on the edge of my seat, hungry for more. Of course the next episode is two weeks away and probably the last of the show unless CBS deigns to bring it back in 2009. Based on the level of interest I have and I've seen from readers,
Swingtown has earned a second season.
But I digress, let's get back to "Get Down Tonight." There was an awful lot of getting down, including the kids. BJ and Ricky had a hot game of strip poker with Sam and her very mature cousin Lisa. Not surprisingly, Ricky was all bluff and ran for the hills when things got too advanced, while BJ showed again that he's a real
mensch (Yiddish for a quality person).
Continue reading Swingtown: Get Down Tonight
Posted Aug 15th 2008 10:39AM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Programming, OpEd, Grey's Anatomy, Short-Lived Shows, Criminal Minds, Cancellations, TCA Press Tour, Reality-Free, Army Wives
I can't decide if this is good news or bad news.
Moonlight star
Alex O'Loughlin is staying at CBS.
Unless you've been in another galaxy for the past year, you know that the Aussie actor cultivated an enormous fan base with his role as vampire P.I. Mick St. John on CBS'
Moonlight. The uproar caused by the cancellation of the show in May can still be heard, well, in another galaxy.
At the
Television Critics Association press tour in July,
CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler said the popularity of
Moonlight was
due in large part to O'Loughlin's fan base. So I can appreciate the fact that CBS wants to keep him around. But it's what they'll do with him that has me worried.
Continue reading Alex O'Loughlin inks deal with CBS...now if they could just create a show like Moonlight...
Posted Aug 3rd 2008 11:43PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Army Wives
"I'll take care of it."
(S02E09) Ah, if only we all had someone in our lives who would say that whenever we turn up with a problem. I'd like to say there were some surprises in this episode, but really there was just one I didn't see coming.
Trevor realizes that he's been a handful so when she says, "I wish I could deploy -- to a five-star spa," he takes her words to heart. In typical TV fashion, because in reality this kind of stuff doesn't happen, Trevor decides to create a spa dinner for Roxie.
The tribe chip in to help him, but the surprise is ruined because Roxie can't resist socializing with the girls from her G.E.D. class. Now, that did come as a bit of a surprise. Not Roxie socializing, but that she's a high school dropout. She comes off as a smart cookie, but apparently that's all life experience.
Continue reading Army Wives: Casting Out the Net
Posted Jul 28th 2008 12:51AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Army Wives
(S02E08) Well, this was one packed episode. I think the only thing missing was the kitchen sink. With the exception of the Denise-Getty will they-won't they love story, every thread was neatly tied up by the end of the show. It made for a satisfying episode, but I'm not sure it was as fulfilling as the storylines that take time to develop and resolve.
It was refreshing to see
Ugly Betty's Ana Ortiz in a few scenes as Sandy, a new waitress at Roxy's bar -- which they're now calling a diner. Even in just the few moments, she was a shot of vinegar. Too bad she turned out to be a one-dimensional character with a plot that was wrapped up before it started. Roxy wiped the floor with her when she fired her, in Roxy style.
What was troubling was Trevor popping pain pills. In his efforts to rush back to his unit, he's making a big mistake. I hope they're not going in this direction, but I'm afraid they are.
Continue reading Army Wives: Loyalties
Posted Jul 16th 2008 8:32AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Daytime, Casting, Reality-Free, Army Wives
If there's one thing about success in the entertainment business it's this: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. That means if something is working on another show, steal/borrow the idea. As I've pointed out before,
the soaps are inspired by movies and TV shows all the time, including
Ugly Betty and
The Devil Wears Prada and
24 and anything else that the daytime dramas can adapt into the soap opera format.
The latest form of flattery will be on
All My Children with the introduction of Beth Ehlers as a new character in Pine Valley, Lieutenant Taylor McBride, a U.S. Army vet who has recently been deployed in Iraq.
Continue reading TV Squad Soap Report: Beth Ehlers reporting for duty to All My Children
Posted Jul 14th 2008 2:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Army Wives
(S02E06) One of the really good things about
Army Wives is that it presents situations and problems that don't have easy answers. As a viewer, you watch and wonder, "What would I do if I was in his/her shoes?"
That was what I was wondering when Claudia Joy was faced with advising a soldier/mother who's teenage daughter was acting out because she didn't want her mother to leave for another tour of duty. With little recourse that doesn't involve court martial and loss of benefits, Clare Duncan, faces a moral dilemma that most TV shows never address.
I have to admit I didn't even know that issues like dual deployment -- when both a father and mother are serving in combat, leaving kids behind and in need of care -- existed till tonight. It seems unfair for the children of military families, which is the point the program was making.
There were plenty of personal stories going on as well. Trevor's a wreck, uncomfortable with being hailed a hero, and Roxy is unsure how to help him.
Continue reading Army Wives: Thicker Than Water
Posted Jul 12th 2008 12:06PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free, Army Wives
The
success of Army Wives has been huge for Lifetime. Currently, the second season is doing gangbuster ratings so it's no surprise the CEO Andrea Wong announced yesterday that
Army Wives has been renewed for season number three.
Commencing in early 2009, there will be 18 new episodes of the military-oriented, drama set in Fort Marshall around the lives of the families of Army personnel. Currently, the tale of the "tribe" has been a grand slam, Sunday night success for the cable net, the number one cable show among women 25-54 and women 18-49, Lifetime's key demographics.
Continue reading Lifetime drafts Army Wives for a third tour of duty
Posted Jul 10th 2008 12:02PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Casting, Reality-Free, Army Wives
Kim Delaney is not Quinn Cummings, but the actresses share one thing in common: Marsha Mason as a mom, on screen that is.
Army Wives has cast Marsha Mason, Oscar-nominated actress for
The Goodbye Girl, as Claudia Joy Holden's mom. She will be appearing on at least two episodes this season, visiting Fort Marshall and her daughter, the general's wife.
Marsha, who is actually has been Oscar-nominated as Best Actress four times in all (
Cinderella Liberty, Chapter Two, Only When I Laugh), will guest on
Army Wives as Charlotte Meade, Claudia's socialite mother. Her relationship with her daughter is strained and her visit comes without warning.
Continue reading Marsha Mason to guest on Army Wives
Posted Jul 6th 2008 11:55PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S02E05) For the first 52 minutes (including commercials) of tonight's
Army Wives, I was wondering where it was going, and -- I have to admit -- I was getting a little impatient. It seemed like a lot of little bits weren't adding up for a very cohesive episode.
Then the last act kicked in and I found myself in tears. The memorial service at the end for the MIA soldier whose remains were finally being returned from Vietnam was a knockout. It just took some time to get to that point.
The heart of the show was Trevor's return from Iraq and his difficulties dealing with the aftermath of killing the man who shot and wounded him. He's uncomfortable with being labeled a hero.
Continue reading Army Wives: The Hero Returns
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