I have to admit that when I initially heard that Abby's character would be crossing over from NCIS to NCIS: Los Angeles, my reaction was meh. What could they possibly do that would make the transfer of the ultimate forensics goth geek from the cozy confines of her lab in D.C. to the high-tech, touch screen caravan in L.A. compelling?
Well, I tip my cap to Speed Weed (that has to be an alias!) for writing the episode, "Random On Purpose," which struck me as one of the best examples that NCIS: Los Angeles is coming together pretty nicely. I could definitely see now how this show is evolving. More on that and the rest of the episode (including spoilers -- be warned -- after the jump).
"Did you hear who's going to play during the Super Bowl halftime show?"
"No, who?"
"That's what I just said. Who."
"No, seriously. Which is the band that's going to appear?"
"It's Who."
"I'm not talking proper English. Which band will be on CBS's halftime show on February 7 at Landshark Stadium in Miami?"
"The Who -- you know, Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend. 'Tommy, can you hear me?'"
"Oh! Why didn't you just say that!"
Okay, I couldn't resist the nod to Abbott and Costello's Who's On First. But the fact is that Sports Illustrated has spread the word that The Who will star in the Super Bowl big, overblown half-time pageant. This follows the safe pattern the NFL has been employing since the Janet Jackson-Justin Timberlake costume malfunction; that is, stick with classic rock stars who are guaranteed to do their hits and not disrobe. That's why we've had Prince, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and now The Who. All superstar acts, no controversy.
If I tell you right now, before November sweeps, that CBS will renew NCIS: Los Angeles for a second season, you won't be surprised. The pre-season projections for this show were that it was a guaranteed success. It wasn't only that it was a spinoff from CBS's top-rated drama series, NCIS. No, it was programming. CBS slotted NCIS: LA in the hour right after NCIS. It had a very strong spot, a monster lead in.
Circle the date on the calendar. On November 24 -- that's right before Thanksgiving so you might be busy with other stuff -- don't miss NCIS: Los Angeles because Pauley Perrette's Abby will be guesting. She won't just be on a monitoring talking to the folks in L.A.; she'll be in the City of Angels.
Goth Abby in the City of Angels? We knew it was coming. But how oxymoronic. All that sunshine is counter to the dark vibe, although if you ask me, Abby is a walking oxymoron. She's a scientist in love with forensics who is covered in tattoos, has a dog collar as a necklace and likes pigtails.
Anyway, back to the crossover. Michael Ausiello's sources have leaked to him at EW.com that Abby's visit to the Left Coast is a major plot point. Abby is not there by choice; she's been abducted.
Over the summer, spoilers were leaked that the NCIS season premiere would begin with a bang. They weren't kidding. Last night's show was a spine-tingling puzzle of an episode that unraveled scene by scene, building suspense to the ultimate -- satisfying -- conclusion. If you were thinking that, like last year, the team was going to be torn asunder after the way things ended with Ziva being returned to Israel, you were pleasantly surprised. More after the jump.
However, there's another story to report. The overnight ratings are in and the viewers have spoken. Twenty million of them! The return of NCIS zoomed to the top of the ratings with 20 million viewers tuning in. That helped CBS launch NCIS: Los Angeles, opening with 18 million, and also bolstered The Good Wife with nearly 14 million. Any way you slice it, those are stellar numbers. The folk at the Black Rock must be dancing in the hallways.
I don't think of LL Cool J as a rap star anymore, I think of him as an actor. But this video below showcases both of his talents. It's for the new NCIS spinoff NCIS: Los Angeles, which I'm sure will be shortened to NCIS: LA at some point.
The song is called "No Crew Is Superior" and goes on waaaaaaay too long, but it does show a lot of clips from the show.
This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com, or call and leave a message at (775) 640-8479. Your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.
Note that over the summer, Spoilers Anonymous will be published every two weeks due to production hiatus for most TV series. Weekly columns will resume in August.
This week we have spoilers for: 90210, Bones, Brothers & Sisters, Chuck, CSI: Miami, Desperate Housewives, Gossip Girl, Greek, Grey's Anatomy/Private Practice, Heroes, Lost, Melrose Place, NCIS: Los Angeles, Scrubs, Smallville, and The Office. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)
Amid the CBS Summer Press Tour this week, the subject came up about why the network had cancelled Without A Trace. It wasn't ratings, which is clearly the truth because just this past weekend, Without A Trace was pulling over six million viewers for a rerun, doubling the number of people who tuned in for the brand new ABC series, Defying Gravity. Therefore, if Without A Trace was still capable of besting the fodder produced by the competition, why on earth would CBS dump it?
"Every show has its own life cycle," said CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler, who went on to explain that the shows the network had in development were just too good to wait. In other words, The Good Wife, Three Rivers and NCIS: Los Angeles, none of which are proven hits, were more important than an established success.
And they aren't waiting for the guest stint. In the second episode, Perrette's brilliant, goth scientist character, Abby Scuito, will do a "fun little cameo" according to exec producer Shane Brennan.
Let's assume that there will be six nominees in the Best Drama category again this year, shall we? It wouldn't surprise me that five out of the six series that were nominated last year are once again nominated this year. Let's face it, Damages, Dexter, House, Lostand Mad Men are still powerhouse drama series and didn't let us down too much this past season.
Since Boston Legal, which was nominated last year, was canceled, it leaves space for another drama series to make its way to the nominees list. Which drama should get the spot?
This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com, or call and leave a message at (775) 640-8479. Your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.
Note that over the summer, Spoilers Anonymous will be published every two weeks due to production hiatus for most TV series. Weekly columns will resume in August.
This week we have spoilers for: Big Love, Brothers & Sisters, CSI: Miami, Desperate Housewives, Fringe, Glee, Gossip Girl, Heroes, Law & Order: SVU, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, One Tree Hill, and The Mentalist. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)
Leo G. Carroll did it in 1966. Lisa Bonet sort of did it in 1987. What am I talking about? Double duty. That is, playing the same role on two series which are running at the same time. There are probably quite a few other instances, but Leo was head man Mr. Waverly on both The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. for a year, and Lisa was Denise Huxtable in college (A Different World) and when she came home to visit the family in Brooklyn on The Cosby Show.
This is Spoilers Anonymous, a weekly column here at TV Squad where we supply you with the dirt on some of the more popular shows on the air. We'll never put spoilers up here on the main page in order to help the reformed stay unspoiled. If you have anything to add to the group, feel free to step up and let yourself be heard, either with our tips form or by emailing us at tvsquad at gmail dot com, or call and leave a message at (775) 640-8479. Your anonymity is guaranteed, if you wish to remain as such.
Note that over the summer, Spoilers Anonymous will be published every two weeks due to production hiatus for most TV series. Weekly columns will resume in August.
This week we have spoilers for: 90210, Desperate Housewives, Gossip Girl, Greek, Grey's Anatomy, House, NCIS: Los Angeles, One Tree Hill, Scrubs, Smallville, The Office and Ugly Betty. (SPOILERS FOLLOW!)
I have to admit that when I initially heard that Abby's character would be crossing over from NCIS to NCIS: Los Angeles, my reaction was meh. What could they possibly do that would make the transfer of the ultimate forensics goth geek from the cozy confines of her lab in D.C. to the high-tech, touch screen caravan in L.A. compelling?
"Did you hear who's going to play during the 
Circle the date on the calendar. On November 24 -- that's right before Thanksgiving so you might be busy with other stuff -- don't miss 
How will the producers of NCIS make sure that fans tune in to the show they don't switch the channel after the end credits and stay put for NCIS: Los Angeles, the spin-off? One way will be with crossovers. We've already reported the 
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