Second Season-related stories
Posted Aug 25th 2009 1:06PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Animation, Reality-Free
Lucasfilms told us at Comic-Con that the new season of
Star Wars: The Clone Wars promised more sophisticated storylines and higher stakes. It is war, after all. And they promised us bounty hunters. One of the most popular classes of characters in the franchise was conspicuously absent during the first season.
To drive this point home, they've even added a snazzy subtitle to the title of the show for this season, as well as giving it a premiere date. The action starts
Friday, October 2 with the one-hour premiere of Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Rise of the Bounty Hunters.
That follows the pattern of the films, if you think about it. While the first film was technically
Episode IV: A New Hope, it was only branded as
Star Wars. The stakes were raised and things got much better with the next installment, complete with official subtitle.
Rise of the Bounty Hunters even sounds like an episode in the film franchise.
Continue reading Star Wars: The Clone Wars gets a subtitle and a premiere date
Posted Aug 20th 2009 9:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Celebrities, Pickups and Renewals, Ratings, Reality-Free
See, this is a reason why cable is becoming the best place to watch TV.
Lifetime has picked up Drop Dead Diva for a second season. The show is a real chick-flick kind of comedy/drama that has done well in the ratings ... for Lifetime.
The 2.6-3 million viewers would mean a cancellation on the networks – think
Pushing Daisies – but on Lifetime, the charm and whimsy of
Drop Dead Diva, the appeal to the female demographic, and the pairing with
Army Wives on Sunday nights spells success.
Continue reading Lifetime loves the Diva
Posted Aug 19th 2009 11:26AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Industry, Programming, OpEd, Reality-Free
While this off-network summer season has reached a fevered pitch after last with
the return of Mad Men, not to be overlooked is that other cable shows have also been delivering the goods. Shows like
Burn Notice and
Leverage, for instance. Regarding
Leverage, there's good news to report.
TNT will air two extra Leverage episodes in the weeks ahead.
Continue reading TNT's giving us more Leverage
Posted Jun 12th 2009 5:09PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Reality-Free, Dollhouse
I'm glad that in this interview,
Joss Whedon says that he and the team "really understand Dollhouse now. We understand what works, and what didn't work so well." I do wish he'd figured it all out from the beginning, as it would have saved him the situation he's in now. Off to a very shaky start last season,
Dollhouse barely eked out a renewal.
The main problem is that it took about half of that short season for the show to find its voice and become something I was really invested in. So now Whedon needs to find a way for his show to "break out" in its second year, or I fear that
Dollhouse will go the way of recent second season fails (not in quality, but in ability to make a third) like
Pushing Daisies,
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and the most famous of all,
Jericho. That core passionate following is great to have, but you need to grow your audience to make it to three.
Continue reading Whedon "really understands" Dollhouse now, but can he get the viewers
Posted Jun 10th 2009 11:09AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
Mere hours after the series premiered on the cable net,
Showtime has renewed Nurse Jackie for a second season. Why so fast, you might wonder? Well, Showtime could point to the biggest premiere since 2004, but because it was on pay cable the total number of viewers is less than two million. Those are the kind of numbers that would get it canceled on USA or TNT, not to mention ABC or CBS, but for Showtime it's excellent.
Excellent is also what a majority of TV critics and bloggers -- including
Jane -- had to say about the Edie Falco dark comedy. Some were more effusive than others, but for all intents and purposes, the press was pro-Jackie from the get-go. But not everyone loved the show.
Nurses complained loudly about the depiction of their profession.
Continue reading That was fast! Showtime gives Nurse Jackie second season pickup
Posted Apr 20th 2009 12:04PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S02E01) After the harrowing
conclusion from last season, Mary Shannon was back and after 30 hours of sleep, she actually seemed ready to return to work. However, as Marshall soon found out, looks can be deceiving. Mary and Jinx and Brandi were still together and coping, but the effects of one of them nearly being raped, killing a man, concealing drugs, having their home turned inside out and suffering the indignity of the FBI invading every corner of your life took a toll. They thought they had come out the other side unscathed, but as the episode unfolded, damage was evident.
For Mary, getting back on a case, even as Marshall's sidekick, was a welcomed relief from administrative leave. Her denial of post-traumatic stress disorder was typical for her. In fact, she was suffering, but it manifested itself as a happy, chipper and congenial Mary. Stan, Marshall and Bobby D. were baffled by this alternate universe Agent Shannon, but for viewers wise to the ways of TV, it was clear that something was amiss.
Continue reading In Plain Sight: Gilted Lily (season premiere)
Posted Jan 9th 2009 1:03PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: OpEd, The Apprentice, Celebrities, Casting
Yesterday, NBC
revealed the cast for the second edition of
Celebrity Apprentice, an announcement that
had been made in October but somehow kept under wraps by the press until now. How did that happen? Well, my guess is that the press got a look at the names of the "celebrities" on the list and determined that they weren't leak-worthy.
I mean, really ... Dennis Rodman? Dice Clay? Tom Green? Joan and Melissa Rivers? A Kardashian sister that isn't Kim? No wonder why the only people who leaked the news were Letterman and Conan; they cast is barely even worthy of late-night monologue scorn.
Continue reading Can the Celebrity Apprentice succeed when there's no writers' strike?
Posted Mar 10th 2008 11:02AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV on DVD, Interviews
Considering that MTV seems to cater to nothing but teenagers, how did two thirtysomethings and a very mature 25 year-old end up making one of the network's most popular shows?
By being funny. Damn funny, in fact.
Rob Huebel, Aziz Ansari, and Paul Scheer (l-r), otherwise known as
Human Giant, are entering
their second season on the cable network, starting tomorrow night at 11 PM ET. I spoke to the guys by telephone last week as they were doing a round of promotion for their second season, as well as
the DVD of the first season, which was released on March 4.
Tidbits from the interview, and audio clips, are after the jump.
Continue reading Human Giant: The TV Squad Interview - AUDIO
Posted Mar 9th 2008 8:22PM by Richard Keller
Filed under: Industry, Pickups and Renewals, The Sarah Connor Chronicles
If you were a fan of FOX's mid-season drama The Sarah Connor Chronicles, and you were wondering if the show was going to come back or not, the following information should give you a bit of relief. Or, at least a bit of hope as to the future of the series given FOX's erratic pattern of pickups and renewals.
According to Kristin over at E! Online, the sci-fi series that takes place in the universe of the Terminator movies (even though some die-hard fans scoff at it), the show will be coming back for a second season in the fall. That information comes from Thomas Dekker, who portrays the young John Connor on that program. Dekker was reported to say that Chronicles' producers are currently pitching second-season stories to the network at this time. In addition to this tidbit of information, unnamed sources are saying that production for the show will resume in mid- to late-June.
Continue reading Sarah Connor may be coming back for another season on FOX
Posted Nov 7th 2007 3:21PM by Richard Keller
Filed under: Industry, Heroes, WGA Strike
There's good news and bad news coming out of the Heroes' universe. The good news: despite the ongoing WGA Strike, the current 'Generations' story arc running on the hit NBC show will conclude on December 3rd in an episode entitled 'Powerless'. The bad news: should the strike extend through the new year 'Powerless' may be the season finale for Heroes.
That's what Jeph Loeb, co-executive producer and writer of the series, is saying in press reports. Luckily, Loeb and executive producer/creator Tim Kring saw this strike coming ahead of time so they, and their crew, worked like crazy to get the first story arc done before the strike deadline. This made people like comic book artist Tim Sale, who creates art for the Isaac Mendez character, nearly have a nervous breakdown. Even with the hectic work schedule Loeb states that fans should be satisfied with the end of the first story arc as many hanging plot threads will be resolved.
Continue reading Season two of Heroes could end early if the strike continues
Posted Sep 2nd 2007 11:03AM by Adam Finley
Filed under: TV on DVD, OpEd, Adult Swim, Celebrities, Early Looks
A few days before an advanced copy of Robot Chicken Season Two arrived in the mail, I had been watching my Mission Hill DVD. For those who don't know, Mission Hill was the creation of Simpsons writers Josh Weinstein and Bill Oakley. It focused on a college graduate named Andy French, living the typical slacker existence of an aimless college grad. The series aired when I myself was an aimless, slacking twentysomething, so I found the series funny, poignant, and often heartbreakingly real.
I realized while watching it that Adult Swim hasn't had a series with that kind of substance in a long time. Series like Baby Blues and Home Movies have been replaced by weird post-modern fare like Aqua Teen Hunger Force* and the works of Tim and Eric, with very little programming left with any real emotion.
Continue reading Robot Chicken Season Two Uncensored - DVD review
Posted Aug 24th 2007 1:40PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Industry, Friday Night Lights
We like to complain when networks don't give series a fair chance, so it's nice to see NBC getting behind the new season of Friday Night Lights with such enthusiasm. Teaming with HouseParty.com, the network is sending out party kits to 1,000 Friday Night Lights fans, including an advance copy of the season opener. The season officially begins on October 5 at 9:00 p.m. You can apply for a chance to host one of these parties on September 14 on the House Party site. The party kits will include various trinkets and ephemera, as well as episodes from season one and a sneak peek of the new Bionic Woman series.
Continue reading NBC hosting "sneak peek" parties for Friday Night Lights
Posted Aug 22nd 2007 7:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Programming
Well, no wonder I missed this news: it was buried in some Variety article with "R. Kelly" in the title. You might as well slap a "poison" label on a jar of Skippy and expect me to open it. Seriously, people.
Anyway, yes, The Whitest Kids U Know will be heading to IFC for its second season after completing its first season on Fuse, IFC's sister channel. IFC has also acquired rights to the first season of the series. Fans of the series should be happy about this move for two reasons: IFC does not censor anything, and, it's commercial-free. The troupe is currently shooting the second season.
Continue reading Whitest Kids U Know move to IFC for season two
Posted Aug 20th 2007 10:00AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV on DVD, OpEd
Yes, I know it's been a couple of months since the second season of
Extras came out on DVD. But since
I reviewed Season One earlier this year, I figured it would only be fair to look over Season Two, even if it's only for anal completist reasons (Of course, our UK Bureau -- otherwise known as "Martin Conaghan" -- reviewed the series when it aired on the BBC; his reviews start 1/4 of the way down
this page).
From everything I heard and read, the second season of the Ricky Gervais / Stephen Merchant comedy was better than the first season. Of course, given the high standards set by Gervais and Merchant, that was saying a lot. After watching Season Two, I have to say that I agree with those assessments, but not for the reason that you think.
Continue reading Extras: The Complete Second Season - DVD review
Posted Aug 8th 2007 5:30PM by Richard Keller
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Programming, Pickups and Renewals
Well, it looks like two of TNT's Monday primetime dramas are coming back for another season. Last week we reported that The Closer was returning for a fourth season. Now it looks like Saving Grace will be returning as well.
Grace, which stars and is produced by Holly Hunter, has received a network order for an additional 15 episodes. Since premiering on July 23rd the show has ranked tops among new cable shows. With its lead-in of The Closer the show has averaged 5.5 million viewers each week.
This leaves Heartland, which stars Treat Williams, as the only TNT Monday night drama yet to be renewed. Hopefully the curse of Everwood doesn't hang over this medical drama.
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