We really do live in a very different television landscape.
NBC has decided to put five of its shows online a week before they even premiere on TV, to build buzz. The network has decided to use Hulu to show the first episodes of new show Knight Riderand returning shows 30 Rock, Lipstick Jungle, Life, and Chuck.
Of course, putting episodes online is nothing new. All of the networks do it (sometimes they even "leak" the shows themselves to create buzz), but this seems to be a true attempt by NBC (which needs the help) to change the way they schedule, promote, and debut shows, a change in the way they program.
(S05E05) In this episode, Brooke Shields stopped by to have the designers make something for her character to wear in the new season of Lipstick Jungle. Two things surprised me. A) Lipstick Jungle hasn't been canceled yet and B) Brooke Shields still looks fantastic. Maybe it's because I wasn't watching in HD, but still.
For the first time this season, the designers were broken into teams for the challenge. Last season, it seemed like the majority of the season consisted of team challenges, so I was surprised that it took five episodes before they got around to it for this group. I guess I was surprised by a lot of things in this episode.
Today was the very last day of the press tour here in Beverly Hills. It was "TCA Day," with members of the association (including me) going to the Warner Brothers lot to visit the sets of ER, Pushing Daisies, and Chuck, where we spoke to cast members and producers (Oh, we went to the set of America's Best Dance Crew, but let's just forget I mentioned that one). Then we bused it over to the Fox lot, where Joss Whedon showed us around the set of Dollhouse, and the entire cast of King of the Hill gave a table read of their 250th episode. All this fun will be in upcoming posts later this summer.
Despite some of the griping you may have seen from me, it's been lots of fun. It's just a very tiring experience. Case in point: On Monday, NBC decided to close out the press conference portion of the tour by having us sit through ten panels, five of them after lunch. Here's a wrap-up post that goes over some of what went on yesterday that I haven't already covered.
"Pope in America: Blessed Week Ever": As promised... Popewatch! The Pope is in America and the media has been going absolutely nuts. Their fawning descriptions of Pope Benedict have been appropriately Pope-ish. The intensity of this coverage confused Jon though, as he was still under the impression that the Jews ran the media. I think my favorite part of that JNN clip was the crawl along the bottom. "Weather: Chilly, wear a jacket.... Eat up! You're skin and bones.... Next door neighbor a doctor... A doctor!.... Oil $110 a barrel, but for you $90.... Rachel Weisz: She's a Jew you know..."
(S01E07) "When fortune knocks, offer a chair." - Lorraine, the writer
NBC advertised this week's episode of Lipstick Jungle as the "season finale." Yet, about a month ago, they ordered six more episodes of the series saying that season one would get 13 episodes. NBC probably doesn't want LJ to face shows like Lost; so the network probably decided to air those six episodes next season in a less threatening timeslot. Let's face it, the series, even if it definitely got better over time, is not the best out there. It benefited a lot from the strike since it aired without much of competition.
Even if the season finale could have been more rocking, it was a satisfying episode that left viewers with a few questions such as: Was Charles really cheating?, Did Nico take the right decision?, Did Joe have a one-night stand or was this woman a "regular"?, Will Victory forgive Joe since, technically, he didn't cheat?, etc.
(S01E06) "It must feel like a really horrible surprise party" - Kirby to Wendy
I felt sorry for Wendy as I watched about 4/5 of the episode unfold. (I had to tape the episode and the VCR decided to not be my friend and stopped around 45 minutes in! Thanks NBC for complete recaps of the episodes.) Not only did Wendy go to a meeting she didn't want to go but she had the unpleasant surprise to learn that not only one of her best friend has been lying to her for weeks but that Nico also flew her boy toy half across the world for a booty call!
(S01E04) "People like us are easy targets." - Hector to Nico
If we look at what Lipstick Jungleoffers us, indeed, people in the movie, fashion, or magazine business are easy targets. Wendy's ex-nanny wrote a book, Victory's career was destroyed by one bad collection, and Nico had to face a fake lawsuit that had some truth to it (even Nico admits that what she did could be seen as sexual harassment).
This week's episode closed the books on the lawsuit Kirby filed against Nico but it didn't end their relationship. Why did he really do it? Even if Mike was the snake behind the ordeal, Kirby agreed to go forward yet all he wanted was Nico...
NBC's Sex and the City-like fashionable show Lipstick Jungle received an order of six extra episodes. This means that the series will get a first season of 13 episodes.
TV Guide reveals that the series, based on the book of the same name written by SatC author Candace Bushnell, is winning its timeslot among women of the 18-49 and 18-34 categories.
(S01E03) "I could do a lot worse." - Madeleine about Wendy being her mother.
Indeed, Madeleine could do a lot worse. Wendy may not be a model mother but she is human and tries to make ends meet as best as she can. This week we saw more of how a scandalous book can affect someone and the control damage needed to smooth things over. Good thing that Wendy has a very good friend who is not afraid to play dirty!
(S01E02) "Tsunami for bad mommy." - Janice after seeing a picture of Wendy crying because of the book.
After watching the Lipstick Junglepilot last week, some of TV Squad readers commented on the fact that the series was not true to the book and that it was not light enough. One commenter even said that it left an ABC romantic TV movie aftertaste in her mouth. Other people thought it was good but not fantastic and that the actresses gave fair performances. Not having read the book, I cannot compare. The pilot didn't wow me but was interesting enough to have me turn up for more this week. However, "Nothing Sacred" was a let down and, if it had not been for the fact I had to write this review, I think I would have switched channels to watch Eli Stone live instead of tomorrow morning.
I don't know what I was expecting exactly this week. But it wasn't what I was offered by the NBC series.
(S01E01)Earlier today, I gave you a take on what I thought NBC's new dramedy Lipstick Jungle was like. The series, based on a novel penned by Sex and the City author Candace Bushnell, premiered with a slightly revamped pilot and a whole lot of promos for Maybelline.
I won't rehash what I said in my early look post since there weren't enough changes between the two versions of the pilot. The main change is the recast of Wendy's husband (Paul Blackthorne took over the role held by Christopher Wiehl); a good move if you ask me. Wiehl's performance in the pilot wasn't believable and strong enough. Blackthorne is more fitting in the role and will bring in a nice flavor to the show thanks to his English background.
Are you in need for a TV series that may fill the void left by the departure years ago of the Sex and the City ladies and Cashmere Mafia ain't working for you? You may be interested to know that Brooke Shields, Kim Raver and Lindsay Price return to the small screen this week in the new NBC dramedy Lipstick Jungle, based on a novel penned by SatC author, Candace Bushnell.
Well, we knew that replacement shows would be announced because of the strike, and here's one: NBC's Lipstick Jungle. It's going into ER's Thursday at 10pm slot in February, when the medical drama runs out of new episodes. I actually thought that ER would run out of episodes long before February, so this is good news for fans.
Lipstick Jungle stars Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan), Kim Raver (24, The Nine), and Lindsay Price (The Price Is Right - just kidding, she was on Pepper Dennis, Coupling, and Jack and Jill) as three sexy NYC execs who get involved with ... well, lipstick I imagine. Possibly even jungles.
It's that time of the year. People are being cast in pilots left and right and some interesting stuff has been announced. At ABC, Christopher Titus (Titus) has landed one of the lead roles in an untitled project from Warner Bros. The show focuses on CEOs and also stars Dylan McDermott (The Practice) and Michael Vartan (Alias). McDermott and Vartan as CEOs is an easy sell. But Christopher Titus, Senior VP Harvard graduate? That's different, and something I look forward to checking out.
Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix) is set to star in ABC's Suspect. The show is a procedural that will solve crimes by tracking suspects through a lineup. She's joined by Eric Palladino (ER) and Kathleen Munroe (Beautiful People). The ABC track record for procedurals is less than impressive, but the addition of Guy Ritchie (Snatch) as director is intriguing enough to give this one a look.
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(S01E04) "People like us are easy targets." - Hector to Nico
(S01E03) "I could do a lot worse." - Madeleine about Wendy being her mother.
(S01E02) "Tsunami for bad mommy." - Janice after seeing a picture of Wendy crying because of the book.
(S01E01) 
Well, we knew that replacement shows would be announced because of the strike, and here's one: NBC's Lipstick Jungle. It's 
It's that time of the year. People are being cast in pilots left and right and some interesting stuff has 
Giveaways reminder: Office, Eli Stone, Supernatural, South Park
Giveaway Thursday: Tickets to the New York Television Festival ... all of it!
I miss the media-friendly John McCain - VIDEOS
