TVSquad

Earlier this week, I let you know of the ten shows I thought should be renewed. Now it's time to reverse the question and think about the shows that shouldn't be renewed. Yes, there are some shows that should end now, either because they have annoying characters (*cough* Meredith Grey *cough*), are not treated properly by their network (insert here pretty much all shows on FOX), have been on TV for too long and have a hard time being original (I'm talking about you Survivor), etc. ER would have been a prime candidate for this list, but NBC finally made the right decision and ended the show a few weeks ago. Note that my list includes some shows that have received early renewals. Still, I think they should be canceled asap. So what other shows, besides ER, I think should bite the dust? Let's find out!

If you just want the list, click here.

10 - Survivor, CBS

9 - Ghost Whisperer, CBS

8 - The Bachelor, ABC

7 - The Unit, CBS

6 - At least one CSI, CBS

5 - At least one Law & Order, NBC/USA Network

4 - Brothers & Sisters, ABC

3 - Private Practice, ABC

2 - American Idol, FOX

1 - Grey's Anatomy, ABC

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It's that time of year again when network executives are having meetings after meetings to decide which shows we should be watching next season. The CW announced the renewal of six of its shows about two months ago but besides that announcement, news of renewals have been rare when compared to news of cancellations.

Today, ABC sent out a press release confirming the twelve of its series would return for the 2009-2010 season. As you'll see after the jump, it was pretty much a given that those series would get another year either due to their ratings or the low cost of production compared to the money the show brings in with sponsors and ads.

Fox seems to think so. It has struck a deal with Mike Fleiss, the producer of The Bachelor, to produce a new dating show in which everyone will be more "average" looking. The show will be called More To Love.

They claim it's an attempt to break the industry assumption that viewers only want to watch highly attractive people. It seems more like another attempt by reality television to use a certain type of people in exchange for some air time on a major network. But that's just me.

My big concern is that Fox is essentially taking advantage of the obesity problem in the United States. While I like the concept behind such shows as The Biggest Loser, this has the potential of being a case of freaks on display. On the other hand, if the people behave normally, it could give a good message to the public that being overweight, while not healthy, does not automatically make a person unattractive.

Close sources have been throwing the rumor that Melissa Rycroft will be replacing Nancy O'Dell on Dancing with the Stars. Although there aren't any official statements from ABC about Rycroft (or about Holly Madison replacing Jewel), it seems very plausible. I'm under the assumption that Toni Dovolani will be her professional partner. If the name doesn't ring a bell, Melissa was a contestant on the most recent version of The Bachelor.

The replacement news seemed quite obvious for ABC. Think about it: What's the best way for ABC to replace a contestant last minute? Pick someone in their own pool. I was hoping for a Disney Channel star, someone from Pushing Daisies, yet another soap star, or at least someone that could be considered more of a "celebrity."

I'm not expecting much from Melissa, especially with Trista, the original Bachelorette, being eliminated first in Season One. Granted, there were only six contestants that season. Melissa is already behind the eight ball since she has less time to practice than everyone else and she probably has a smaller fan base than the rest of the celebrities.

It's either a response to the economy (you know we writers and "reporters" are contractually obligated to mention it at least twice in every 15 minutes of 200 words) or is it us? Laziness on the part of network executives (the nerve you say!) or laziness on us? Or maybe we can blame the Writers Guild of America strike from last year. Or maybe it would be easier to just blame the Bush Administration; another mandate. Or maybe we just miss our made-for-television movies. Whatever the reason, there are more and more longer and longer programs on television.

Just this season, The Biggest Loser and The Bachelor expanded their regular broadcasts to two-hour blocks. We've already been dealing with multiple hours a week of American Idol and Dancing With the Stars for years now. Just this past week, both Brothers & Sisters and 24 offered up back-to-back installments, the former even billing it a two-hour movie event. Now 24 has been known to launch seasons in this way, so it's not such a big deal. But since when did a culture of short attention span Twittering, Facebooking Internet junkies suddenly get the patience for two-hour-long episodes of television shows?

For some, watching relationship-based reality programming is not their idea of a pleasant night in. Why should they watch shows about finding and keeping love when it takes so long to find that right person in real life? Yet, since the mid-'60s, viewers have turned-in to watch others search for their soul mate. Or, at least their soul mate of the hour.

Of course, in the time of the Reality Revolution, the way love was found on television changed a bit. Rather than asking a simple set of questions to a set of bachelors or bachelorettes sitting behind a wall, men and women would compete for the love of a well-to-do bachelor or bachelorette, or a rapper/model, or a washed up 80s hair band star. They would even compete to see if their love could withstand an onslaught of temptation.

Sometimes they would find their one true love on these reality show. Other times they would be tossed away, their hearts broken, like a piece of paper. Along the way they would be love, sex, fights, sex, heartfelt moments, and sex. With reality programming being what it is, the viewers ate it all up.

A month ago, bachelor Matt Grant handed the final rose and a $60,000 engagement ring to actress Shayne Lamas in the season finale of ABC's The Bachelor: London Calling. The final credits of the episode hadn't even finished rolling when people (I include myself in the lot) were already betting on how long the two of them would last together. No, the couple didn't officially break up yet, but Matt did move out of Shayne's house.

Are you a "momma's boy"? Or are you a mother who is really overprotective about who your son dates? Well, if you are, you might want to try out for Ryan Seacrest's (American Idol) and Andrew Glassman's (Average Joe) new show Momma's Boys. NBC's new reality series will air after the Summer Olympics in Bejing. The show will center around a group of mothers choosing the perfect woman for their sons. According to the press release, "drama ensues when numerous mothers and their eligible bachelor sons are housed together with several single women." So, they have to live together too? This sounds like The Bachelor meets Sister Patterson from I Love New York.

After weeks of dating and eliminating some 25 women, including some crazy ones like Stacey, London bachelor Matt Grant found his soul mate. The 27-year-old proposed to one of the final two ladies in this week's season finale of the ABC's The Bachelor.

Did he give the $60,000 engagement ring to 24-year-old Chelsea or 22-year-old Shayne? The answer after the jump!

A day hasn't gone by where we haven't received some sort of tip or email asking us, the TV Squad, how to get on [insert reality show here]. Unfortunately no, Simon Cowell does not work for us, and Donald Trump isn't my BFF, so we really can't help all that much.

The folks at RealityWanted.com often send us a list of new and existing reality shows that are looking for new, er, talent, and they've given us permission to make mention of them here. We'll try to make this a regular feature as often as we get a new list.

This time we have The Real Housewives of NYC ,The Moment of Truth and other new shows.

TV Squad's Fearless Leader, Keith McDuffee, is in charge of meting out the free screener DVDs he receives from various networks. Sometimes the screeners are awesome -- complete season sets of popular shows or weeks-in-advance pilot episodes of hotly anticipated new series -- and sometimes, well, they are not awesome. At some point I made a joke that he seems to send me the worst of our screeners (I keed! I keed!) and Keith's response was to start sending me every single bad screener offered to TV Squad. I'm talking the kind of programming they're currently showing at Guantanamo Bay.

Well, two can play at this game! I've decided that I'm going to review every horrible show Keith sends me. If I have to be tortured with the likes of Queen Sized and The Simple Life Goes to Camp, well then, you guys have to be tortured by reading about it. Sorry, it's only fair. Our first foray into Screener Hell is Farmer Wants a Wife (Wednesdays 9 PM, starting April 30)...

A day hasn't gone by where we haven't received some sort of tip or email asking us, the TV Squad, how to get on [insert reality show here]. Unfortunately no, Simon Cowell does not work for us, and Donald Trump isn't my BFF, so we really can't help all that much.

The folks at RealityWanted.com often send us a list of new and existing reality shows that are looking for new, er, talent, and they've given us permission to make mention of them here. We'll try to make this a regular feature as often as we get a new list.

This time we have The Bachelor, The Pick Up Artist, Teen Dream and other new shows.

I'm not what you'd call a fan of The Bachelor. I only watched Seasons 3, 4 and 7 of the ABC reality show (it's now season 12) and watched its spin-off, The Bachelorette. I had no plans to tune in this season but, since there was nothing else on that interested me and because I was too lazy to switch channels after watching Dancing with the Stars, I decided to watch the "London Calling" version of the dating reality series.

The main difference between this season and the others is the fact that the hunk du jour is from London. Besides that, the series hasn't changed much since I watched Charlie O'Connell give the final rose to Sarah Brice.

It was finally ABC's turn to unveil its winter schedule yesterday. There aren't many surprises in it except that Lost, as rumored, will now air on a new night and that Big Shots, who was benched last week, will get a fifth another chance. ABC's winter programming will also include the premieres of Cashmere Mafia, Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann, Eli Stone and Oprah's Big Give and the return of a few reality series, such as Supernanny and Wife Swap, to fill the void left when scripted series will have aired all their new episodes.