TVSquad

Last night, Late Late Show host Craig Ferguson talked about the death of Michael Jackson, specifically about going to a Michael Jackson concert years ago. This clip gives a good example of what Ferguson's monologues are like, if you've never seen them before. He also inadvertently comes up with a great idea for a new MTV reality show, Surprise The Skank With A Camera. (Jackson part starts around 2:16).

This has already been a big week for series announcements in the UK. There was a time when that would be a big "Who cares?" for American viewers. Why worry about shows they couldn't see anywhere near their first run air dates?

But with US networks importing Brit shows regularly in original and remade forms, it won't be long before these shows air on screens on both sides of the Atlantic.

Yesterday, the BBC announced the arrival of the new thriller comedy Psychoville. Created by League of Gentlemen stars Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, Psychoville brings together "a misguided midwife, a lovestruck telekinetic dwarf, a blind avaricious collector and a serial-killer-obsessed man-child," as each receives a mysterious card reading: "I know what you did..."

Suffice to say, if this new show shares even a little of the hyper-creative weirdness of League of Gentlemen, you'll be entertained. But, you may need a couple of aspirin when you're done watching.

I guess this means Help Me Help You is officially canceled (it has been on 'hiatus' since mid-December). Ted Danson has signed on to a legal thriller alongside Glenn Close. Danson will play a corporate executive "involved in a class-action lawsuit brought on by a high-stakes litigator", played by Close. If the untitled series gets picked up by FX, Danson has agreed to the entire first season.

Danson and Close have starred together in a drama before. They starred together in Something About Amelia, a 1984 made-for-TV movie that got them both nominated for Emmys and won Danson a Golden Globe.

(S01E05) I'd be lying if I said I haven't been enjoying The State Within. With a little bit of tweaking in the script and acting department, it could have easily made for a reasonably good ongoing series, if only the complex premise didn't warrant so much preamble before the main event kicked in.

However, with the most recent -- and penultimate - episode, I feel it's changed tack from a complex political conspiracy theory thriller, to a relatively straightforward and middle-of-the-road potboiler, replete with a hand-in-hand male/female pursuit sequence and the suspected bad guy turning out to be a good guy after all, just as I predicted in last week's review.

(S01E03) Well, the good news is that Hopper is healing. The bad news is that his life still sucks. Last week, I had to agree with commenter Mrs. Eldubya, who said basically that the show wasn't as good as she had expected, but it was still worth tuning in for. Well, this week? The show got better.

This show hinges on the details-- and boy, do they get that right. Hopper is talking to his partner, Andrea, and she says, "How do you know I won't just take this into them?" (The Internal Affairs people who have offered her a deal if she brings in Hopper-- this being the hourglass that was in the package). The scene briefly shifts to her taking a bullet in a previous incarnation of the day in which she took a bullet for him so he could get away.

(S01E01 / S01E02) Anna Johns called Day Break "Groundhog Day meets Diehard." Before I read that, I was thinking Groundhog Day meets 24, because we are talking about 24 hours in a man's day that are very important -- essential, even. I would even throw some Traffic and Crash into the mix-- maybe because of the cinematography and direction. I admit that I had preconceived notions going into this because I have seen Groundhog Day so many times.

(S01E02) Well folks, if I was confused last week, I'm positively perplexed this week -- but I still can't say I'm not enjoying this political conspiracy drama from the BBC.

It simply wouldn't be entertaining enough to have a basic hit-and-run plot where X marks the spot and some Tricky Dicky figure is behind the cryptic series of messages being delivered by a guy in an underground car park.

Complex is good, especially when it's well-executed and ticked down at a rapid pace like this is.

I've been noticing more and more ads for the new ABC suspense-drama Day Break, which stars Taye Diggs as a cop who begins to experience the same day over and over and over again (a la Groundhog Day) when his girlfriend is murdered. Can he change events enough to save her life? Of course, there's a major, super secret conspiracy involved, as in all of these shows it seems.

Now, there's nothing wrong with a continuing drama per se. If they're good, I'll certainly watch it, and the previews for Daybreak look promising. But you have to question how parrot-like the networks are, wanting to just do anything to duplicate a megahit. Without even thinking that, while Lost is certainly a good show, maybe it was more a matter of timing, time slot, and subject matter than just the quality, that unpredictable mix that catches on. The demise of Vanished and Kidnapped and the so-so ratings of The Nine are not good signs. (And this isn't the only show still to come; the thriller Traveler is coming to ABC in early '07).

Daybreak starts November 15, in the Lost time slot.

If you're life has been feeling empty lately and you can't figure out why that is, it's probably because you've never seen a Bollywood version of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Nine out of ten dentists recommend you watch the clip I've placed after the jump at least three times a day. I'm not sure why, but they do. The video simulates the zombie dancing from Michael Jackson's original, and the music is Thrilleresque, but I'm fairly certain the man isn't singing "Thriller." Either way, the damn song is stuck in my head now, whatever it is. I think I might actually like this version better anyway, although, like the original, I can't figure out why the girl doesn't just run away. The zombies clearly aren't going to give chase until after they finish their dance number. They've been rehearsing it for days, after all.

[via Brad Sucks]