TVSquad

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

How can so many TV DVDs be released on one day and still there isn't one that I want to buy? The only one of the below sets that I might be interested in getting would be Simon & Simon. And that's only because it's one 80s action drama that I never got into for some reason but feel I should catch up on. But there's plenty of stuff for fans of every type of show, from Sons of Anarchy to The Smurfs.

• The Beast - Season 1
• Cracker - The Complete Series
• Dexter - Season 3
• Dirty Sexy Money - Season 2
• Eli Stone - Season 2
• Everybody Hates Chris - Season 4

ABC's canceled-too-soon Eli Stone is still making gossip headlines weeks after the series finale aired on ... a Saturday night.

Via the Watch with Kristin column over at E! Online, we learn what the writers had planned beyond that last Eli Stone episode ABC aired.

Executive producer and creator Marc Guggenheim dishes about Eli and Maggie, Eli and Grace, the flash-forward in Times Square, Dr. Chen and Nate, Matt and Taylor, Jordan and Taylor's mother, Nate and Maggie (yes, you read right), and much more!

Spoilers(?) coming up!

• At 8, NBC has a new Kings.
• Nickelodeon has a new iCarly at 8, then a new True Jackson, VP.
• Cartoon Network has a new BrainRush at 8, followed by a new Destroy Build Destroy.
• GSN has a new 20Q at 8, then a new episode of The Money List.
• HGTV has a new Divine Design at 8.
• At 8:30, FOX has a new Cops, followed by a new America's Most Wanted.
• At 9, CBS has the two-hour series finale of Harper's Island.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• Syfy has the movie Sand Serpents at 9.
• Also at 9: Hallmark has the movie The Gambler, The Girl, and The Gunslinger.
• At 10, ABC has a new Eli Stone.
• There's a new episode of The Dish on Style at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

At first I was excited when ABC announced that it would burn off the remaining episodes of Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Money this summer. Now, I'm not so sure. I enjoyed the run of Daisies, and was even fairly satisfied with the ending. It had just lost a bit of its charm for me, so I was okay with seeing it end. Eli Stone, however, has been turning in some of the best episodes of the entire series this summer. The more I get, the more I want.

I don't know if absence made the heart grow fonder in this case, but the show is firing on all cylinders. And the character progressions? Maggie seems to be finding happiness and love at Pohsner Klein, and a much darker side? The Dowd coming back to Wethersby Stone? Even WS almost going under; sure you knew they were going to win a case to save the firm, but I liked how they had them first lose one to PK to make the situation even more dire. And then find the winning case when Jordan was bitching about his eggs.

• At 8, NBC has a new Kings.
• Nickelodeon has a new iCarly at 8, followed by a new True Jackson, VP.
• Disney has the movie Princess Protection Program at 8.
• TCM has Notorious at 8.
• Cartoon Network has a new BrainRush at 8, then a new Destroy Build Destroy.
• At 9, CBS has a new Harper's Island.
• FOX has a new America's Most Wanted at 9.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• TBS has Ellen's Bigger, Longer and Wider Show at 9.
• BBC America has the premiere of Doctor Who: The Next Doctor at 9, then a new Graham Norton Show.
• Food Network has a Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives marathon at 9.
• At 10, ABC has a new Eli Stone.
• Travel Channel has a new Samantha Brown's Great Weekends at 10.
• Also at 10: TruTV has a new Man vs. Cartoon.
• At 10:30, HGTV has a new HGTV's Top 10.
• At 12:30AM, Cartoon Network has two new episodes of Bleach.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, NBC has a new Kings.
• HGTV has a new Divine Design at 8.
• Cartoon Network has a new BrainRush at 8, then a new Destroy Build Destroy.
• GSN has a new 20Q at 8, followed by a new episode of The Money List.
• TCM has Random Harvest at 8, then The Bad Seed.
• Current has Jack Black and Michael Cera Take Over Current at 8.
• At 9, CBS has a new Harper's Island.
• FOX has a new America's Most Wanted at 9.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• Spike has a new Ultimate Fighter at 9.
• Also at 9: FUSE has Bonnaroo 2009.
• At 10, ABC has a new Eli Stone.
• Style has a new episode of The Dish at 10.
  
• At 12:30AM, Cartoon Network has two new episodes of Bleach.

Check your local TV listings for more.

ABC announced their summer schedule, complete with returning reality "favorites" and some new shows, but honestly, who cares about all that?! What matters is that three of my favorite sophomore shows that were killed too soon are all scheduled to make their triumphant (?) returns to ABC this summer, as promised.

Yes, I'm talking about Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Money. Apparently, ABC has decided that the Saturday 10pm/9pm Central timeslot is the perfect place to air the remaining episodes of each series, one after the other. After all, it is the dead zone of television, so what do they have to lose?

If you had to guess, what's the most coveted, prime TV real estate currently available? In February, it was the post-Super Bowl slot, but now -- what could it be. How about the hour after the American Idol finale on May 19 on FOX. With that in mind, FOX has decided to give one of its most promising, albeit unusual, new products the hour.

Ryan Murphy's musical comedy series Glee is getting the post American Idol finale hour. And yes, it is a musical comedy TV series. After American Idol crowns its new winner on May 19, all those millions of viewers, the ones who stay on the network, will see a special preview of the show about a struggling high school glee club.

I should point out that when I say "coming back this summer" in the headline I mean that ABC is bringing them back to burn off the remaining episodes that haven't aired yet. That's right, six months from now is the earliest you'll see any of these shows return. They could even come back later.

Pushing Daisies has three episodes left, while Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Money each have four. Fans of these shows might not like this, but the truth is, the shows that have been in the time slots for these shows have actually done better in the ratings.

• At 8, ABC has Happy New Year, Charlie Brown, followed by Rudolph's Shiny New Year and new episodes of According To Jim and Eli Stone.
• PBS has a new Nova at 8.
• ESPN has The Holiday Bowl at 8.
• Also at 8: BBC America has a new My Family.
• At 9, CBS has The 31st Annual Kennedy Center Honors.
• There's a new ECW on Sci-Fi at 9.
• At 10, TNT has a new Leverage.
• Bravo has a new Real Housewives of Orange County at 10.
• At 10:30, Disney has a new Life with Derek.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show listings.

... five canceled shows.

Some shows, like critical darlings The Shield and Battlestar Galactica, are allowed to end gracefully; major story arcs are wrapped up and fans are left satisfied. Others are yanked from network schedules like unsightly weeds from a rose garden.

The networks yanked a number of shows off the air this season. Most of them, like The Ex List, probably deserved the axe, but there were four that deserved more time to develop an audience and one that I'm really gonna miss. In no particular order, they are:

Oh, Festivus, Oh, Festivus, the holiday for TV fans. How exciting that once a year we can close our eyes, click our heels and make our wishes for the magical ways television can be made better in the year to come. Still, there are more than a few changes that I think need to be made to make TV better ... not to say that it's bad. It just that everything can be better.

This is a great opportunity to get a little Scrooge-y and vent about what I want to see corrected/improved/altered in TV in 2009. Is it wrong that I hope the bigwigs at the networks and cable companies are surfing the net and take my grievances to heart? Is it wrong that I still believe they care about what viewers think? Yeah, probably, but here's my wish list anyway:

• At 8, ABC has A Charlie Brown Christmas, then a new According to Jim.
• CBS has a new NCIS at 8, followed by new episodes of The Mentalist and Without A Trace.
• NBC has the season finale of The Biggest Loser at 8, then the premiere of Momma's Boys.
• G4 goes over the top video game stories of the year on a new X-Play, then a new Attack of the Show has a holiday gift guide.
• Also at 8: BBC America has a new Christmas episode of My Family.
• At 8:30, Nickelodeon has a Christmas episode of Fairly OddParents, then Christmas episodes of Home Improvement and The George Lopez Show.
• At 9, Discovery has a new Dirty Jobs.
• History Channel has a new episode of The Universe at 9.
• There's a new ECW on Sci-Fi at 9, then a new Cha$e.
• At 10, ABC has a new Eli Stone.
• TNT has a new Leverage at 10.
• Lifetime has a new Blush at 10.
• Biography Channel has a new Shatner's Raw Nerve at 10, with Kelsey Grammer.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show listings.

As we reported previously, ABC decided to spin the wheel and cancel three of its shows -- Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money and, the big surprise, Eli Stone. Surprise to me, at least, because I felt that Stone was moving in the right direction since its very strong season premiere. With its slightly new direction, continuing character growth, and imaginative visions that placed the show nearly in the realm of 'musical drama,' the show seemed to be heading in the right direction.

But, as usual, my opinion didn't count in the network's decision to axe the show after 13 episodes. It should have, to be honest. Not only because I wield the power of the keyboard and can bring those programming nerds down with a stroke of my CTRL key, but because I speak for the numbers of fans who cherish the show and think it was done an injustice. Not just by being canceled, but being lumped together with Daisies and DSM.

• At 8, ABC has two new episodes of Dancing with the Stars, then a new Eli Stone.
• CBS has a new NCIS, followed by new episodes of The Mentalist and Without A Trace.
• NBC has new episodes of The Biggest Loser and Law and Order: SVU.
• There's a new House on FOX at 8, followed by a new Fringe.
• The CW has a new 90210 at 8, then a new Privileged.
• PBS has a new Nova at 8, followed by a new Frontline.
• ABC Family has the two-hour season finale of Lincoln Heights at 8.
• AMC has Midway at 8.
• Also at 8: TCM has Warner at War, followed by This is the Army.
• At 8:30, Lifetime has a new Rita Rocks.
• At 9, ESPN has the two hour finale of The World Series of Poker.
• Sci-Fi has a new ECW at 9.
• At 10, FX has a new episode of The Shield.
• Bravo has a new Real Housewives of Atlanta at 10.
• Lifetime has the series premiere of the new reality show Blush at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.