A few days after the CW unveiled its fall primetime schedule, the netlet has release new teaser trailers for its upcoming series Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries.
The thirty-second spot for Melrose Place features swooping camera movements through the iconic apartment complex and voiceover from the characters about their dreams, fears, and dilemmas, before then showcases a series of quick-cut scenes from the pilot episode. Melrose Place will air Tuesdays at 9 pm ET/PT.
The promo for the Kevin Williamson-executive produced supernatural series Vampire Diaries, meanwhile, puts the action squarely on the relationship between teenager Elena (Nina Dobrev) and vampire Stefan (Paul Wesley), culminating in the first encounter between the two star-crossed lovers. Vampire Diaries will air Thursdays at 8 pm ET/PT.
The new promos for Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries can be found below.
Melrose Place:
Vampire Diaries:
Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries will launch this fall on the CW.
It's no surprise that ABC is dumping its new animated comedy The Goode Family in the hinterlands of summer.
I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to watch the first episode of this new series (which launches tonight) from creators Mike Judge (King of the Hill), John Altschuler, and Dave Krinsky, about a family of vegan do-gooders who are determined to leave the Earth a better place than they found it.
The good-intentioned family consists of father Gerald (Mike Judge), a college administrator, mother Helen (Nancy Carell), a community activist, sarcastic teenage daughter Bliss (Linda Cardellini), and adopted teenage son Ubuntu (Dave Herman), whom the Goodes believed was black when they adopted him from Africa. Now sixteen, he is still oblivious to the fact that he's actually white (he puts down African-American as his ethnicity on his driver's license form). And, oh, even the family's dog Che is a vegan, though the canine harbors an insatiable hunger for the neighborhood pets, stalking and killing most of the smaller animals around the town.
The Goode Family would have been a hell of a lot funnier five or ten years ago when political correctness was in full swing and the sort of observations about organic apples, fuel-efficiency, veganism, and fair trade would have seemed timely and sharp. Here, they seem to have about the same bite as Che's malnourished gums. There's a leaden feeling to The Goode Family that's further weighed down by the sensation that we're seeing a television series that should have aired years ago.
As it is, we've all heard these jokes now ten-thousand times before: the paper versus plastic dilemma at a global organics market (clearly subbing in for Whole Foods), the meat is murder/woven-hemp aesthetic of the vegan culture, the joys of biking to work versus conspicious fuel consumption of SUVs, the earnest confusion of whether to call someone "African-American" or a "person of color," and teens rebelling against their overbearing hippie parents by not having sex at all.
There's nothing particularly new or original about The Goode Family and the overwrought and unfunny jokes about green living and do-goodery fall particularly flat. (They also felt like clunkers on the page as well.) Which is a shame as Mike Judge has succeeded in the past at skewering social subsets with a gleeful abandon, but the same can't be said about The Goode Family, which just seems tired and worn, even in the first outing.
Nancy Carell's Helen bemoans the fact that it's "so hard to be good" not once but twice in the opening episode and I can't help but agree with her, especially in the case of predictable and unimaginative animated comedies like The Goode Family.
The Goode Family premieres tonight at 9 pm ET/PT on ABC.
Did you fall for the charms of Dr. Jack Gallagher (Chris Vance) in this new medical drama series as he treats his patients with some rather unorthodox approaches? Did you think it was a little too similar to House territory? Were you taken in by the series' cast, including Jacqueline McKenzie, Annabella Sciorra, Derek Webster, Marisa Ramierez, and Nicholas Gonzalez? Or were you bored silly?
And most importantly: will you watch the series again next week? Talk back here.
Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.
Jennifer Westfeldt (Grey's Anatomy) and John Boyd (The Notorious Bettie Page) have been cast in Day Eight of FOX drama series 24. Westfeldt will recur as journalist Meredith Reed, an ambitious writer who has ties to Middle East leader Arman Hashemi (Anil Kapoor), who arrives in the U.S. on a peacemaking mission. Boyd, meanwhile, will be a series regular and will play CTU analyst Jonah Schwartz. (Hollywood Reporter)
The Middleman creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach has joined the writing staff of NBC's upcoming sci-fi series Day One, where he will serve as writer/co-executive producer. Also joining the writing staff, according to series creator Jesse Alexander (who broke the news via Twitter): Kings' Erik Oleson, and Angela Kang. (io9)
BBC Films has confirmed that a big screen version of Doctor Who is being developed and that development of a script is currently underway. It's unclear whether inbound showrunner Steven Moffat or executive producer Russell T. Davies will write the feature film or if David Tennant or his replacement, Matt Smith, would play the Doctor. (Digital Spy)
Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has contacted Joss Whedon for a reaction to the news that director/producer Fran Rubel Kuzui is planning a feature film reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Joss' noncommittal reply? "I hope it's cool," wrote Whedon via email. Ahem. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
HBO will launch comedy series Hung, starring Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, and Anne Heche, on June 28th at 10 pm ET/PT, following an episode of True Blood. The first episode of Hung runs a lengthy 45 minutes while the subsequent installments will each run 30 minutes. (Variety)
The Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed has a hysterical cartoon jokingly depicting FOX executives deciding the fate of on-the-bubble sci-fi series Dollhouse and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles at gunpoint. (The Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)
BBC America will launch supernatural drama Being Human, about a werewolf, vampire, and ghost who live together, on Saturday, July 25th at 9 pm ET/PT. (Televisionary)
Bravo is developing reality spinoff The Real Housewives of Washington, D.C. and is said to be looking for "personalities who are among Washington, D.C.'s influential players, cultural connoisseurs, fashion sophisticates and philanthropic leaders -- the people who rub elbows with the most prominent people in the country," according to Bravo EVP/general manager Frances Berwick. Series, to be developed by Half Yard Productions, is expected to launch sometime in 2010. (via press release)
Al Pacino will star in an untitled HBO telepic about Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Set in the early 1990s, the film will follow Kevorkian (Pacino) as he creates the first assisted suicide machine and the resulting media frenzy. Project, written by Adam Mazer and based on Harry Wilie and Neal Nicol's biography "Between the Dying and the Dead," will be directed by Barry Levinson. (Variety)
ABC is following through on its plans to merge ABC Entertainment and ABC Studios into a single unit under president Steve McPherson. While the network is said to still be finalizing its "development chain of command," it's widely thought that Suzanne Patmore-Gibbs--who currently serves as EVP of drama development--would be promoted to become McPherson's second-in-command, leaving Channing Dungey to take over as the network's head of drama and Josh Barry to replace Dungey on the studio side. (Hollywood Reporter)
Carol Kane will reprise her Homicide: Life on the Street role as Gwen Munch, the ex-wife of Detective John Munch (Richard Belzer) in the June 2nd season finale of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The episode will also feature Nick Stahl (Carnivale), who will play Peter Harrison, an artist turned killer who has set his sights on one of the SVU team after he succumbs to mental illness and Kane's Gwen will have to help her ex-husband track him down. (via press release)
RelativityReal, the reality/alternative arm of Relativity Media, has signed a three-year overall deal with Wilmer Valderrama, under which he will create, develop, and executive produce series for both broadcast and cable networks. Valderrama is currently developing a half-hour telenovela Brooklyn Sound at MTV. (Variety)
Digital cabler BBC America has announced a launch date for supernatural drama series Being Human.
The six-episode series, which stars Russell Tovey (Doctor Who), Lenora Crichlow (Sugar Rush), and Aidan Turner (The Clinic), will kick off on Saturday, July 25th at 9 pm ET/PT.
BBC America won't be airing the original pilot episode for Being Human, which aired last year on BBC Three and--other than Tovey--featured an entirely different cast including Guy Flanagan, Andrea Riseborough, and Adrian Lester. While the pilot is considered canon, it wasn't included on the recent Region 2 DVD release for Being Human and isn't necessary viewing in order to understand--or enjoy--the series itself.
The full press release from BBC America and the original trailer for Being Human from BBC Three can be found below.
SOME ROOMATES ARE SCARIER THAN OTHERS –The U.S. premiere of co-production, Being Human–
Mixing the mythic with the commonplace, the farcical with the horrific and the domestic with the epic, Being Human, a BBC AMERICA co-production, is a witty and extraordinary look into the lives of three twenty-somethings and their secret double-lives – as a werewolf, a vampire and a ghost. Russell Tovey (Doctor Who, The History Boys), Lenora Crichlow (Sugar Rush, Doctor Who) and Aidan Turner (The Clinic) star as housemates trying to live normal lives, despite their strange and dark secrets. Being Human premieres Saturday, July 25, at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.
George (Russell Tovey) and Mitchell (Aidan Turner) work in anonymous drudgery as hospital porters. They lead lives of quiet desperation under the burden of a terrible secret—Mitchell’s a vampire and George a werewolf. Deciding to start life afresh and leave behind the dark side, they move into a house, only to find that Annie, the ghost of a woman killed in mysterious circumstances, haunts it. As the monster threesome deals with the challenges of their new life together, they’re united in their desire to blend in with their human neighbors.
By all appearances, George is a mild-mannered and geeky guy - except for one night a month when he’s a flesh-hungry, predatory werewolf. Mitchell is good-looking, laid-back and, unlike George, has an easy confidence with the ladies. But he’s also suffering withdrawal from the blood he craves. Annie (Lenora Crichlow) is chatty, insecure and desperate for company and now that death has separated them, she longs for her fiancé, who owns the house she haunts.
But with unwelcome intruders into their world, a threatened revolution from the vampire underworld and constant threats of exposure – on top of the day-to-day issues faced by young people – the only thing they may be able to rely on in their heightened world, is each other.
Being Human launches Saturday, July 25th at 9 pm ET/PT on BBC America.
ABC's newest drama series Eastwick, which launches this fall, is the type of series where people are meant to be "serious" because they wear glasses.
Giving a new meaning to telegraphing rather than letting the plot unfold on its own, Eastwick--based on the 1987 feature film The Witches of Eastwick--tells the story of three women who are strangers to one another in the idyllic New England town of Eastwick. Each making a wish on a coin that seemingly magically appears in their presence, they unwittingly open the door to the return of an enigmatic figure into their midst. A figure whose arrival presages darkness, evil, and wanton destruction, along with sex, sex, sex.
But before that, there's the drinking of martinis, the discussion of menfolk, and some female bonding, making Eastwick something more akin to Lipstick Jungle with magical powers.
Rebecca Romijn (Ugly Betty) plays freethinking artist and single mother Roxie Torcoletti, a woman who is prone to jumping into bed with much younger men (like Matt Dallas' Chad) and sculpting fertility goddess statues. Lindsay Price (Lipstick Jungle) is deeply repressed local newspaper reporter Joanna Frankel, a woman who can't quite work up the nerve to ask her hunky co-worker Will (Dirt's Johann Urb) out on a date or ask her editor for a promotion. (Did anyone tell her she's lucky to have a media job in these dismal economic times?) And then there's Jamie Ray Newman (Veronica Mars), who plays devoted mother and wife Kat Gardener, a nurse whose marriage to the boozy, unemployed Raymond (Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian's Jon Bernthal) is on its last legs.
Their wishes summon a man (or is it the Devil himself?) named Darryl Van Horne (Slings and Arrow's Paul Gross) to Eastwick. Arriving in the town, Van Horne sets about to answer all of their prayers, purchasing many a failing business as well as a historic estate (meant to be a snowy egret sanctuary) and the local paper. Eastwick quickly falls to Van Horne and so do its women. With the notable exception, that is, of local historian Bun (The Nine's Veronica Cartwright, who appeared in the original film), hospitalized after an attack by red ants who warns Kat against the coming darkness.
As for our trio, they are quickly bonded by circumstances out of their control, pushed together by the cone of power and they quickly let their hair down and become involved with this charismatic stranger, who changes their lives even as they discover access to abilities they didn't know they had. Roxie can see into the future via prophetic dreams and manages to come to the aid of her daughter Mia (Days of Our Lives' Ashley Benson) when she's nearly date-raped; Kat unleashes lightning to smite her husband Raymond when he threatens to divorce her and take their numerous kids; Joanna uses her mesmeric gaze to land that promotion and get Will to admit that he has feelings for her.
Rounding out the cast is Sara Rue, who plays Penny, Joanna's best friend and her co-worker at the paper, a dour woman who seems to have forgotten to get in line when they were handing out sympathetic qualities. I'm not sure how Penny fits into the larger picture but she uncovers evidence at the pilot's very end that indicates that Darryl Van Horne may not be who he claims to be.
The problem is that audiences will have likely lost interest by then. Eastwick, written by Maggie Friedman and directed by David Nutter, is the sort of series that tries way too hard by far to be likable, mixing its supernatural plot with discussions of vibrators and penis size, confusing predictable crassness for subversion.
But the real issue is that none of Eastwick's characters are remotely likable or compelling. In fact, some like Sara Rue's Penny and Jon Bernthal's Raymond are so irritatingly shrill and annoying that I wanted some divine intervention to smite them where they stood and then drop their ashes into that over-the-top fountain. The rest seem to be made up of the sort of cliches we find on female-skewing series that look to emulate the sort of feminine discourse made popular by Sex and the City.
Paul Gross tries his best as the seductive Darryl Van Horne but it's hard to separate his performance from that of Jack Nicholson's and Gross comes off as little more than a Nicholson manqué here. He's meant to be the Devil at his most magnetic but Gross' Van Horne is a little too stuck in the 1980s to be all that alluring. (Hell, Romijn's Roxie even makes a joke about his out-dated hairstyle.)
The three main actresses are all passable but none of them seem to be having a particularly good time. Price's Joanna comes across as equal parts frigid and socially awkward (hence the vibrator talk with Will) but then is transformed halfway through the episode into a vampish coquette able to get her way with everything. (She's actually far more likable when she's putting her foot in it.) Roxie dreams of being murdered and comes face to face with Jamie, the man responsible, at the episode's end. And Kat is tired of her husband's constant leeching and so moves the earth and opens up the heavens to strike him down. If this all unfolds just within the very first installment, how can the plot escalate?
It's hard to see just how much longevity this premise has. Now that Joanna and Penny know that Van Horne is an impostor by the end of the pilot and the women are all exhibiting fine-tuned use of their magical abilities, just where do we go from here? What is Season Four of this series? (Hell, what's Season Two?) Does Eastwick really have the legs to be an ongoing drama?
Perhaps if the dialogue were more clever and the writing less hackneyed, it would be easy to overlook the obvious flaws within Eastwick. But as it is, I found the pilot episode to be both cloying and grating and far less clever than it believes itself to be. No magic here, sadly.
Eastwick airs Wednesdays at 10 pm ET/PT this fall on ABC.
Was it just me or was Friday evening's season finale of Party Down ("Stennheiser-Pong Wedding Reception") absolutely hysterical and poignant in equal measure?
Throughout its first season, Party Down--which will return for a second season sometime in 2010--has proven itself to be a cutting social satire of the wannabe Hollywood set as it explores the morals and motivations of a group of cater-waiters hoping to move up a rung on the ladder of fame and fortune.
In episodes scripted by co-creator/executive producer John Enbom, this has typically taken a dark turn and Friday night's episode ("Stennheiser-Pong Wedding Reception"), which guest starred the always delightful Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars) as Ron's catering nemesis Uda Bengt, was no exception, offering an installment that not only shocked and saddened but also made me giddy with excitement.
While Party Down attempted to cater a gay wedding this week, they discovered that they weren't the only caterers assigned to the event and soon had to contend with the Valhalla Catering Company, a group of attractive, black-garbed model-esque waiters overseen by the rigid and icy Uda Bengt (Kristen Bell). (Yep, butter wouldn't melt in her mouth.) But that's not the only problem. Ron is a total mess, having gone off the deep end and reverted back to his old habits of drinking, Roman is stuck directing guests' attention to the restroom sign and latches onto wedding guest George Takei, Casey awaits a call about a gig that could end her relationship with Henry, Bobbie (Jennifer Coolidge) is high on magic mushrooms (her description of lemons as "sun eggs" had me rolling on the floor), and Kyle is desperate to pitch himself to a producer at the event.
All of which leads to poor Henry having to take the reins of Party Down and keep everyone on track. Season One has largely been about Henry's path from former actor ("Are we having fun yet?") to full-time caterer, a move that he's been largely resistant to, even as he can't quite veer from this inevitable destination. But Henry does step up, organizing the color-coded appetizer trays, preventing George Takei from dying, keeping Ron under control and largely out of site, and shielding his employer from the suspicions of Alan Duk (Ken Jeong). And just like that, Henry suddenly is thrust into the role of responsible member of society, a team leader. In essence, Henry has now become Ron.
For everyone else, the party provides a bit of an escape, a last hurrah before their lives change forever. Casey accepts a six-month stand-up gig aboard a cruise ship (shudder), Kyle is so willing to do anything to get a role in a feature film that he agrees to do, well, anything (wink, wink, nudge, nudge), and Ron finally gets the seed money from Duk to start his very own Soup R' Crackers franchise. It's a series of changes that beautifully sets up a second season of the series and allows some actors to come and go.
I'm hoping, however, that they all--including Jane Lynch--return for another go-around as I'd hate to lose any of them. I think that it's pretty safe to say that Ron's Soup R' Crackers franchise will fail (especially now that Ron is back on the sauce) and he'll have to return to Party Down, likely reporting to team leader Henry, and Casey will return from what's bound to be a horrific cruise gig as well. Jennifer Coolidge's Bobbie St. Brown has been a fine fill-in for Jane Lynch's Constance Carmell but I'm hoping that Lynch can find time from her busy Glee-filled schedule to reprise her role as Constance next season.
Meanwhile, I have to say what a thrill it was to see Kristen Bell again on the small screen, particularly in scenes with her former Veronica Mars sparring partners Ryan Hansen and Ken Marino, the latter of whom played the despicable Vinnie Van Lowe on the short-lived Rob Thomas series. Bell brought a severe iciness to the role and we felt--painfully--just how much Uda manages to ruffle Ron's feathers. (Personally, I could see an entire series filling in the backstory between Uda and Ron when they worked together at Party Down.) And the way that Bell kept up her arctic demeanor even when hitting on Henry? Priceless. (Is there anything we can do to lure Bell back to a weekly series again? Anyone?)
All in all, this week's episode of Party Down was a fantastic season closer to a ten-episode run that has cemented Party Down as one of the hilarious and moving comedies on television today. I'm going to miss the deliciously loopy gang at Party Down and hope that Rob, John, et al can bring them back to the small screen sooner rather than later. In the meantime, I see a sun egg that requires my attention.
Party Down will return with a second season next year on Starz. Missed the first season? It's currently available for streaming on Netflix's Watch Instantly.
Dr. Jack Gallagher (Chris Vance) is willing to do anything and everything to help his patients?
How do we know this? Well, in the opening minutes of FOX's new mundane medical drama Mental, which launches tonight, we see Jack strip down to his birthday suit in order to connect with a naked patient suffering a break from reality. Yes, it's his first day as Director of Psychiatric Services at Wharton Memorial Hospital but, damn it, Jack is unorthodox and, let's just say it, committed.
Jack treats every patient like a puzzle that must be solved and he has a gift of getting into people's heads in order to understand them as human beings and then effectively treat the illness and not its symptoms. His nude display does him no favors with the rest of the hospital's staff, including his former lover and hospital administrator Nora Skoff (Annabella Sciorra), uptight Veronica Hayden-Jones (The 4400's Jacqueline McKenzie) who was passed over for Jack's position, attending physician Carl Belle (Derek Webster) whose calm exterior belies a deep hatred for Jack, lesbian doctor Chloe Artis (Marisa Ramierez), and womanizer Arturo Suarez (Nicholas Gonzalez).
I had the opportunity to watch Mental's first episode and what struck me right off the bat was just how completely different Colombia looks compared to Los Angeles. Shot on location in Colombia by Fox Television Studios, Mental is the first of a multi-series global co-production initiative to shoot entire seasons of new series in Latin America using American actors and then sell the completed series back in the United States. It's an ambitious gambit that could rewrite the rules of programming but I don't think that Mental is going to derail current business models any time soon.
For one, Mental, created by Deborah Joy LeVine and Dan Levine, doesn't entirely feel like an American-produced television series. The entire look of it doesn't capture the slick energy of, say, similarly medical-themed series House and the production values don't quite seem up to the snuff of a first-run primetime US series. And, as indicated before, the Bogota-based establishing shots and exteriors clearly set it somewhere other than the series' intended home of Los Angeles.
All of which would be quibbling if the series itself were strong. But there's a clear reason why FOX has decided to air the tedious Mental in the traditionally programming-lite summer season rather than in season: Mental isn't a particularly strong series, full stop.
Sure, Chris Vance (Prison Break) does his best to please as the passionate and determined Jack Gallagher, going to far as to disrobe in front of his new staff and break into a patient's home (when caught, he tosses off a blatantly over-scripted bon mot about "making house calls") in order to get to the root cause of their current condition. But, unlike Gregory House, Gallagher tries too hard to be sympathetically quirky and just comes off as annoying rather than earnest.
Likewise, Jacqueline McKenzie, so fantastic as Diana Skouris on The 4400, does the best she can with the role she's given but Veronica is so unlikable and shrill that you almost start to hope that she can suffer her own mental breakdown just so she can get out of doing rounds. And Annabella Sciorra irks as well. She's keeping a secret from her fellow hospital staffers and she needs Jack on her side even as she fights off an ongoing sexual attraction to the dashing doctor. Yawn.
The rest of the cast is serviceable but hardly exciting. It's hard to actually think of them as fully formed characters, rather than barely sketched cliches who exist to share exposition. And that's perhaps the biggest flaw with Mental: it's snooze-inducing from start to finish. The glacial pacing and one-dimensional characters do nothing but call more attention to the fact that we've seen medical dramas built around nonconformist medical practitioners before and done, well, significantly better.
Ultimately, you'd be better off avoiding Mental, taking two Ambien, and calling me in the morning rather than wasting your time this summer with this uninspired series.
Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.
Could Buffy be heading back to the big screen... sans Joss Whedon, Sarah Michelle Gellar, or any of the supporting talents that made the franchise a success? Sadly, yes, in what appears to be shaping up as one of the worst ideas of the year. Executive producers Fran and Kaz Kuzui, along with Vertigo Entertainment's Roy Lee and Doug Davison are said to be developing a reboot of the Buffy franchise. (Fran Rubel Kuzui directed the original Buffy feature.) However, said project would not involve characters like Willow, Xander, Angel, or Spike (or, indeed any of the above elements) and would instead focus on a new slayer and would kick off a new franchise. The producers are currently meeting with writers and have not reached out to Joss Whedon about any involvement with the project. (Hollywood Reporter)
David Tennant will star opposite Elisabeth Sladen in two upcoming episodes of Doctor Who spin-off The Sarah Jane Adventures's third season. Reprising his role as the Doctor, Tennant will not just cameo but will play a leading role in a two-part episode when the series returns for its third season in September. "Viewers thought they may have to wait until November for the next full episode of Doctor Who, but this is an extra special treat," said executive producer Russell T. Davies. "And it's not just a cameo from David – this is a full-on appearance for The Doctor as he and Sarah Jane face their biggest threat ever." (BBC)
Sarah Chalke still hasn't made up her mind about whether she will reprise her role as Elliot on Season Nine of Scrubs, recently ordered by ABC. "I actually don't know yet what I'm going to do, but I will very soon. You guys will be the first to know. Regardless, I'm excited that the show got picked up again and it's going to go another year," Chalke, who stars in Lifetime's upcoming mini-series Maneater, told E! Online. ""I think the setup on Maneater kinds of lends itself to [an ongoing series] because you've got the close group of girlfriends, sort of a Sex and the City." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)
Reveille and Brillstein Entertainment have partnered to develop an unscripted series based on Twitter. Details are scarce but the project--to be executive produced by Amy Ephron, Kevin Foxe, Steve Latham, Mark Koops, Howard Owens, Jon Liebman, and Lee Kernis--is described as "putting ordinary people on the trail of celebrities in a revolutionary competitive format." (Variety)
Now that the dust has cleared after the network upfronts, it's clear who the real winner is this development season: studio Warner Bros. Television, who managed to sell a new series or have one renewed on every single broadcast network. Besides for NBC's Chuck, which got an eleventh hour renewal, the studio is behind such series as ABC’s Eastwick, Hank, The Forgotten, The Middle and V, Miami Trauma, Cold Case, and There Goes the Neighborhood at CBS, FOX’s Human Target and Past Life, and The CW’s Vampire Diaries, The Beautiful Life and Parental Discretion Advised, which will be co-produced with CBS Television Studios. "This season, it’s been very challenging," said WBTV President Peter Roth about the struggles the studio faced this year. "One network has five fewer hours of shelf space. The changing economic environment challenged every company. We are facing, most especially, the imperative to put on undeniable, can’t-miss, have-to-watch TV. It’s been a challenging year, perhaps more so than other years. I feel satisfied at least in terms of having been given our opportunities, a chance to get on the air with product I really believe in. The real test will be how many of these can be true long-term hits." (Broadcasting & Cable)
Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed takes a look at some of the timeslot competition this fall, rating such competitors as ABC's Desperate Housewives and CBS' Three Rivers, Fringe against Grey's Anatomy and CSI, Southland against Medium, Dollhouse, and Ugly Betty, and Flash Forward vs. Survivor, Bones, and NBC's comedies. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)
Season Two of Merlin, which is set to air on BBC One this fall, will feature guest stars such as Mackenzie Crook (The Office), Sarah Parish (Mistresses), Adrian Lester (Hustle), Charles Dance (Bleak House), and Santiago Cabrera (Heroes). The series, which will air its first season Stateside on NBC this summer, stars Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Anthony Head, Katie McGrath, Angel Coulby, Richard Wilson, and John Hurt. (BBC)
Former USA executive Lindsay Sloane has been named FOX's co-head of drama programming, where she will oversee the department with Terence Carter and report to Matt Cherniss. Sloane replaces Rachel Bendavid, who is leaving the network. "We've established the ideal team to lead the next generation of drama development at FOX," said Matt Cherniss, who called Sloane a "gifted scripted series development executive." (Variety)
As there have been a lot of new visitors popping up here at Televisionary lately, I thought I'd take the opportunity this Memorial Day to take a look back at some recent posts that may have given you a reason to take a break (or sneak one) from work. (Not that I'm advocating that or anything, mind you.)
Hopefully, you're off from work today, with the family, having a lazy old day of it. But if you happen to be stuck inside, below are a few Televisionary moments to keep you entertained...
Televisionary is proud to be a member of the TV Blog Coalition. At the end of each week, we'll feature a roundup of content from our sister sites for your delectation.
This week, I offered up extremely advance reviews on the full pilots of such new series as ABC's V, ABC's Modern Family, NBC's Community, and ABC's Happy Town.
Elsewhere in the sophisticated TV-obsessed section of the blogosphere, members of the TV Blog Coalition were discussing the following items...
Season finales? What season finales? Buzz turned her attention to the months ahead and asked which summer TV show has you most excited. (BuzzSugar)
Sandie interviewed Jenny Wade who plays Nina on Reaper. (Daemon's TV)
Scooter is not sure what the funniest part of Upfronts were, NBC and CBS fighting over Medium, Greg Garcia's Titanic comment, or the clips for the V reboot (which apparently were not supposed to be funny), but he runs down what he will be watching in the fall. (Scooter McGavin's 9th Green)
Vance had quite the reaction when Kris Allen won American Idol. (Tapeworthy)
Jesse gave his detailed analysis of the Will Ferrell-hosted season finale of SNL, which featured too many big star cameos for him to count. (TiFaux)
Scrubs may be back next season, but Jennifer said her goodbyes now.(Tube Talk)
After reading a few Melrose Place spoilers, Matt cannot wait for the reincarnation of this classic series. (TV Fanatic)
For the last two years, NBC has sought to find a series to cement its lineup of comedies on Thursday nights... with mixed results.
Last season's offering, Kath & Kim, didn't quite gel with the wit and dry humor of veterans 30 Rock and The Office and was quickly sent to the mall in the sky. And Parks & Recreation, from the executive producers of The Office, hasn't quite lived up to its potential or pedigree.
Next season, NBC will launch another new comedy series, Community, which will join returnees 30 Rock, The Office, and Parks and Recreation on the Thursday night roster. I had the opportunity last night to watch the full pilot episode of Community and believe that NBC may have finally found a worthy addition to its "Comedy Done Right" lineup.
The dry-witted and caustically funny Community, written by Dan Harmon (The Sarah Silverman Program) and directed by Joe and Anthony Russo (Arrested Development), tells the story of Jeff Crocker (The Soup's Joel McHale), a fast-talking lawyer who faces disbarment when it's learned that his undergraduate degree isn't quite as legitimate as he made it out to be. (It's from Colombia rather than, er, Columbia.)
So it's off to Greendale Community College, home of the world's worst dean (he inadvertently gives a speech to the student body in which he equates the school to "loser college") and a British professor, Ian Duncan (The Daily Show's John Oliver), whom Jeff managed to get off on a DUI charge back in 2002. Jeff figures that Ian can repay him (he successfully got the jury to acquit by convincing them that Ian's highway U-turn and call for chalupas from an emergency call box was a direct result of 9/11) by making the next four years at Greendale as easy as possible by giving him all of the answers to his exams. Ian, however, is not quite buying into Jeff's moral relativism.
Meanwhile, Jeff meets the beautiful Britta (The Book of Daniel's Gillian Jacobs)--described by not one but two characters as looking "like Elisabeth Shue"--and falls for her... to the point that he pretends to be a "board-certified" Spanish tutor in order to spend time with her. But his plan goes awry when fellow student Abed (Greek's Danny Pudi) invites along several other misfit members of their class, resulting in a situation that is intentionally similar to classic 1980s film The Breakfast Club, an homage that is invoked several times throughout the pilot episode.
In order to get into Britta's pants, Jeff issues a speech about them forgiving not just each other but themselves for the actions that have led them here, proclaiming them not to be a study group or strangers, but an actual full-fledged "community." It's played for laughs here but there's a real poignancy and beauty to Jeff's off-the-cuff speech. For whatever their original reasons for being there, this motley group is indeed united under Jeff's dubious tutelage by the end of their first "study session."
The rest of that group is comprised of mature student Shirley (Rules of Engagement's Yvette Nicole Brown), whose motherliness disguises a seething aggression; hyper-sensitive Annie (Mad Men's Alison Brie), who was forced to drop out of high school after getting addicted to prescription pills; former prom king and quarterback Troy (30 Rock's Donald Glover), who lost his sports scholarship after dislocating both shoulders during a keg flip; and creepy moist towelette mogul Pierce (Chevy Chase, most recently seen on Chuck), a man divorced seven times who has an unhealthy fixation on poor Shirley.
McHale is absolutely sensational as the compulsively mendacious Jeff, a man for whom lying comes so naturally, he might as well just be breathing. It's fantastic to see McHale embody such a despicable character, yet he imbues Jeff with an overwhelming charisma that makes it impossible not to root for the guy. (NBC attempted a few seasons back to launch a US version of UK comedy The IT Crowd with McHale and I'm happy that they stuck with their efforts to build a series around him.)
The rest of the cast is equally fantastic and their characters will likely be further developed as the series progresses, but I am already enchanted by Jacob's street-smart Britta and Pudi's hilarious Abed (whom Jeff accuses of suffering from Asperger's Syndrome), who issues one of the pilot's funniest payoffs when he channels Judd Nelson's "What about you, dad?" speech from The Breakfast Club.
The jokes come fast and furious throughout the pilot episode of Community, yet there's not only a self-awareness (witness Jeff's admission that, as he was raised on TV, he believes every black woman over 50 is a spiritual guide) as well as unexpected heart as well. Could it be that the community Jeff establishes on a lie will in fact provide him with the means to change his own life?
While it's not quite at the level of 30 Rock or The Office just yet, Community shows an immense amount of promise and could easily develop into--dare I say it--must-see TV next season, making it one community I'd gladly be a part of.
Community airs this fall on Thursday nights at 9:30 pm ET/PT (before moving to 8 pm later this fall) on NBC.
Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. (Following a week that included the 2009 network upfronts, I think we are all looking forward to a three-day weekend.)
SPOILER!Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has the dish on the actual set-up of the new Melrose Place series, kicking off this fall on the CW, and it will either make you squeal with delight or make you want to scream, well, bloody murder. "Sources confirm to me exclusively that the dead body found floating face down in Melrose's trademark pool in the opening minutes belongs to none other than Laura Leighton's bitchtastic ex-stripper," writes Ausiello of Melrose's seemingly resurrected Sydney. "I'm told her death will set in motion a season-long murder mystery that finds nearly all of the show's principal characters -- particularly Syd's ex, Michael (Thomas Calabro) -- a possible suspect." Leighton, meanwhile, will continue to appear on the series via flashbacks that will explore what happened to her and "what really happened after she became road kill more than a decade ago." (Editor's aside: Wasn't this the basic plot setup of short-lived Melrose Place spinoff Models Inc.?) (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
The strange story of Kirk Acevedo's firing from Fringe just got a hell of a lot weirder (much like the FOX drama itself) as executive producer Jeff Pinkner now claims that Acevedo isn't fired and will in fact be returning for Season Two of Fringe. Pinkner contends that Acevedo "was not fired" and will be playing two versions of Charlie Francis next season (remember the alternate universe Charlie with the facial scar?) “We have already seen two of him on the show,” Pinkner told TV Guide. “We have already met the second Charlie. He had a scar on his face.” Still not explained, however: why Acevedo believed he had been fired. Hmmm... (TV Guide)
The CW's entertainment president Dawn Ostroff has indicated that it's not certain that Smallville and Supernatural will in fact wrap their series runs at the end of the 2009-10 season. "No [....] It's not necessarily the last season," said Ostroff of whether Smallville will hang up its (metaphorical) tights next season. "I hope it's not." As for Supernatural, Ostroff said, "We'll see how the season goes. [...] [The Supernatural creative team] did a really good job this year and it really paid off in the ratings." (TVGuide.com)
As expected, Joel McHale has confirmed that he will not be giving up his hosting duties on E's The Soup, now that his comedy Community has been picked up to series at NBC. I'm going to do both Talk Soup and Community next fall," McHale told Entertainment Weekly. "People can tune in to E! and NBC anytime they want to see me. The series doesn’t take as much time as it does for us to do Talk Soup because we do that almost every day, like a real job." (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)
ABC has ordered Prep and Landing, a half-hour animated holiday special from Walt Disney Animation that tells the story of an elite elven unit that ensures that homes are prepped for Santa's annual visit. Voices will be provided by Dave Foley, Sarah Chalke, and Derek Richardson. Project, expected to air this holiday season, is executive produced by John Lasseter. (Variety)
The CW entertainment president Dawn Ostroff is said to be "sad" to see One Tree Hill's Chad Michael Murray and Hilarie Burton depart the series. "We tried to get them to stay; we would have been thrilled if they wanted to," said Ostroff. "A show going into its seventh year is very open to reinventing itself. And one thing I have to give [series creator] Mark Schwahn a lot of credit for is that he has kept the show so fresh all these years." (TVGuide.com)
20th Century Fox Television has signed a two-year overall deal with director/produced Dan Sackheim (House, Life), under which he will join drama series Lie to Me as an executive producer. (Variety)
Streaming VOD service Hulu is set to launch in the UK in September. The UK-based version of the site is said to contain more than 3,000 hours of US television content and has signed deals within Britain with ITV and Channel 4 as content partners and is also said to be in talks with BBC as well. It's thought that UK's Hulu will display content from the partner the night after broadcast and allow the material to be accessed for 30 days after transmission, following the established British VOD pattern. (Daily Telegraph)
BBC America has announced the launch of Season Four of Gordon Ramsay's F Word, which returns to primetime with a US premiere of the new season on Wednesday, June 17th. Series will air at 9 pm ET/PT through the summer, wrapping its twelve-episode season on September 2nd. This season will find Gordon traveling the world in search of the very best ingredients and challenging guests to make a three-course meal for 50 diners using recipes that they can make at home while Janet Street-Porter attempts to raise two calves in a cruelty-free environment. Guests include Meatloaf, Graham Norton, Dannii Minogue, Jessica Hynes, Erin O'Connor, and Ricky Hatton. (via press release)
Patti Blagojevich, the wife of disgraced former Illinois governor Rob Blagojevich, will be participating as a contestant on NBC's I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! "I don't feel I'm a celebrity. NBC wanted my husband on the show, and when he was unable to go, they expressed interest in me," said Blagojevich in an interview on NBC's Today. "In this terrible economic time, I feel it's necessary to go to work to support my family." (New York Daily News)
BSkyB's Sky Movies has signed a deal to bring the ten-part Steven Spielberg- and Tom Hanks-produced HBO series The Pacific to the U.K. Sky Movies will debut The Pacific, which follows three U.S. Marines in the WWII battle with Japan, next spring. Elsewhere at the company, Sky1 has confirmed that it has canceled reality series Gladiators. (Variety)
BBC Worldwide has renewed its deal with YouTube and, in a first, will allow a "limited number" of full-length episodes of natural history program The Life of Birds to be available for US viewers. It's the first time that long-form BBC content has appeared on the platform, both in the US or the UK. Short-form content from BBC Worldwide will be available on a number of YouTube channels later this year, including BBC America, BBC Explore, and BBC Earth, which feature such series as Doctor Who, Primeval, and Hotel Babylon. (Hollywood Reporter)
USA has promoted Ryan Sharkey to VP of program acquisitions and administration, where he will oversee theatrical and series acquisitions and inventory for USA and sister cablers Sleuth and Universal HD. (Variety)
ABC made a bold statement at its upfront presentation the other day when it presented new midseason drama series Happy Town as hailing "from the network that brought you Twin Peaks."
The statement rubbed me the wrong way for a number of reasons. First, it's not exactly like the executives who developed Twin Peaks even still work at ABC. Second, ABC may have brought us Twin Peaks but it just as quickly canceled David Lynch's groundbreaking drama, which aired a stunning nineteen years ago. And third, Happy Town should not be making any comparisons between itself and Twin Peaks because it is certainly no Twin Peaks.
I had the opportunity the other night to watch Happy Town's 90-minute pilot and the only similarities I could find between it and Twin Peaks were that (A) they both air on ABC and (B) they are both set in small towns where the sunny exteriors belie a secret underbelly of darkness. (Happy Town itself seems to relish the comparison, even having one character hail from Snoqualmie, Washington, where many of Twin Peaks's exterior shots were filmed.)
But while David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks reveled in its supremely surreal weirdness and slow-burn mystery, Happy Town, from October Road creators Josh Applebaum, Andre Nemec, and Scott Rosenberg, tries way too hard to make itself different, throwing at the audience a kitchen sink's worth of bizarro plot twists, flatly quirky characters, supernatural goings-on, red herrings, secret identities, murders, kidnappings, druggings, mutilations, nefarious motives, blue doors, sigils, tattoos, stalkers, star-crossed lovers, forbidden boarding house third floors, and vigilante justice. (Not to mention "The Magic Man.") And that's just in the series' first episode alone.
It's a shame as Happy Town boasts a fantastic cast of well-known (and, in some cases, much beloved) actors but they are hampered by a ridiculous plot, insipid dialogue, and an overabundance of exposition that's about as subtle as an anvil. At its best, Happy Town comes off as a cheap knock off of Twin Peaks without that series' effortless wit, intelligence, or flair. At its worst, it's laughably bad and cartoonish.
The series' sprawling cast includes (but isn't limited to) Geoff Stults (October Road), Lauren German (Hostel: Part II), Amy Acker (Dollhouse), Dean Winters (Rescue Me), John Patrick Amedori (Gossip Girl), Linda Kash (Best in Show), Sarah Gadon (Being Erica), Jay Paulson (October Road), Robert Wisdom (The Wire), M.C. Gainey (Lost), Abraham Benrubi (ER), Peter Outerbridge (Fringe), and Sam Neill (The Tudors).
The effect is to create the feeling of community that such a small town would have but it means that several characters are given short shrift. Amy Acker in particular seems to have precious little to do and it's a shame to see her squander her considerable ability playing a one-dimensional bread factory tour guide and wife and mother here. (A single brief look between her and Dean Winters' character is the sole storyline her character warrants here.)
Happy Town's plot revolves around Haplin, a seemingly idyllic small town in Minnesota (nicknamed "Happy Town"), only just recovered after a slew of unexplained child abductions seven years earlier. The crimes were perpetrated by a man the town has nicknamed "The Magic Man," someone you could walk past in the street without knowing, and resulted in the disappearance of several local children who vanished without a trace. The only sign that they were taken was the positioning of their favorite toy in the spot where they were taken. After a period of seven years, Haplin is finally recovering from this series of tragedies but old wounds prove hard to heal and there is friction in the town over a banner displaying the faces of the children who disappeared at the town's annual Thaw Fest.
But this is almost incidental as Haplin itself is once again shaken to its core when another crime occurs: the murder of a local man who liked to watch women and who was rumored to be The Magic Man himself. He was killed by a railroad spike to the head and the town is baffled by the gruesome crime. It's a blow to Sheriff Griff Conroy (Gainey), who has overseen the town and presided over a community that boasted no major crimes since the end of The Magic Man's kidnapping spree. A blow that seems to have weakened his mind as the sheriff keeps mentioning a mystery woman named Chloe at odd moments. His son Tommy (Stults), a family man who serves as one of the deputy sheriffs, and Detective Roger Hobbes (Wisdom) are concerned... and even more so when the Sheriff locks himself in the office, rants about the Magic Man coming back now that blood has been spilled, and proceeds to chop off his own hand with an old Indian tribal axe that seems to have been ceremonially placed on his office wall for that very purpose.
But there are other mysteries in Haplin as well. Such as the sudden arrival of New Girl in Town Henley (German), who claims to be in Haplin after the death of her mother, who vacated there years earlier, and to open up a candle shop with her inheritance money. She's given a room at a local boarding house where the draconian owner demands absolute quiet during mealtime as well as punctuality and tells Henley in no uncertain terms that she is not to visit the third floor. (Dun-dun-dun.) Also at the boarding house, Henley encounters a group of widows and the single male resident, a British gentleman named Merritt Grieves (Neill), who has just opened a classic movie memorabilia store in town and who introduces Henley to an old film entitled The Blue Door, which seems to rip off Twin Peaks' Killer BOB/Dwarf/Giant plot about otherworldly creatures entering man's heart through a rip between worlds. Henley, of course, isn't quite whom she claims to be but many of the townsfolk, including Merritt, seem to be keeping secrets of their own.
There's also the "Romeo and Juliet" secret romance (and, yes, the two characters actually do refer to themselves as Romeo and Juliet) between teenagers Georgia Bravin (Gadon), the daughter of a ne'er-do-well meth head, and wealthy town scion Andrew Haplin (Amedori), whose parents (including Dean Winters'John Haplin) never recovered from the disappearance of his little sister. Visiting Griff at the hospital, Georgina is seemingly drugged by a Mystery Man (referred to in the script as "Handsome Sam") in the hospital cafeteria and begins a strange hallucinatory journey that includes the transformation of the elevator into the blue door, the repetitive use of Carly Simons' song "You're So Vain," and the creepy smiles of the Mystery Man as she collapses in the vacant hospital lobby. When she awakens, she finds herself in the rundown junkyard home of local outcasts the Stiviletto Brothers. How did she get there? What happened to her? Why was she deposited there? We don't know and, honestly, we really don't care.
Exhausted yet? It's just one of the omnipresent mysteries that we're meant to be invested in but none of them are particularly original, compelling, or well-executed. The real tragedy with Happy Town is that it's nowhere near as clever or engaging as it believes itself to be and the haphazard plotting, hackneyed cliches, and painfully extensive pilot storylines demonstrate a lack of narrative editing on the part of the creators. After all, Twin Peaks took a few episodes to introduce all of its surreal and terrifying subplots before paying them off.
Ultimately, it's hard to imagine just why ABC decided to greenlight this project (based on a spec script written by the trio), even if it is as a midseason replacement that could use the down time to massively retool. My advice: stick to the highway and avoid this Happy Town.
Welcome to Day Four, the last day of the 2009 network upfronts. Up last is netlet the CW, which has now unveiled its primetime schedule for advertisers.
As expected, the CW has ordered three new series for fall, with Melrose Place, Vampire Diaries, and The Beautiful Life joining the schedule and drama Parental Discretion Advised (formerly known as Light Years) getting a midseason berth.
Melrose Place gets the post-90210 spot, echoing the original pairing of the two series when FOX launched Melrose Place way back in 1992.
And it was widely believed that the CW would pair new drama The Beautiful Life--about the personal and professional lives of young models--with reality franchise America's Next Top Model on Wednesdays and, sure enough, they did. (No surprises there.)
More intriguing, however, is that the CW will break up its combination of Smallville and Supernatural on Thursdays and bump Smallville, returning for its ninth and final season, to Friday nights in order to pair Supernatural with new drama series Vampire Diaries at 8 pm.
Meanwhile, the network confirmed the cancellations of such series as Reaper and Privileged and comedies Everybody Hates Chris and The Game.
UPDATE: The full press release from the CW, announcing the primetime schedule, as well as new series descriptions, photography, and video clips can be found below.
CW FALL 2009-10 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE
MONDAY 8-9 pm: Gossip Girl 9-10 pm: One Tree Hill
TUESDAY 8-9 pm: 90210 9-10 pm: Melrose Place
WEDNESDAY 8-9 pm: America's Next Top Model 9-10 pm: The Beautiful Life
FRIDAY 8-9 pm: Smallville 9-10 pm: America's Next Top Model Encores
MIDSEASON: Parental Discretion Advised
For those of you keeping track of such things, here's how the CW schedule stacks up.
Returning Series: 90210, America's Next Top Model, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, Smallville, Supernatural
New Series: The Beautiful Life, Melrose Place, Parental Discretion Advised, Vampire Diaries
New Timeslots for Returning Series: Smallville
Midseason Launches/Returns: Parental Discretion Advised (fka Light Years, Life Unexpected)
Cancelled/Ended: 4Real, 13: Fear is Real, Easy Money, Everybody Hates Chris, The Game, In Harm's Way, Privileged, Reaper, Stylista, Valentine
Reactions: To be honest, there were absolutely no surprises with the CW's schedule, save maybe its decision to shunt Smallville--entering its final season--to Friday nights in order to make room for new series Vampire Diaries. But, really, where else was the CW going to be able to program this series?
Certainly not on Mondays, where the CW will retain its drama combo of Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill. Nor on Tuesdays, the new home of flashback soaps 90210 and Melrose Place, or Wednesdays, where it will pair reality franchise Top Model with new model drama The Beautiful Life. Which leaves Thursdays as the only logical place (no way would they attempt to use it to launch a new night of dramas on Fridays).
(Still, from a demo standpoint it does make sense as Vampire Diaries is extremely female-oriented and could tap into lead-out Supernatural's female fan base, even though I probably would have aired it at 9 pm in order to give it some cushioning from an established lead-in.)
All in all, a rather predictable schedule that will keep the network's lineup stable and use their key strengths to launch three new dramas, as well as another drama--Parental Discretion Advised--in midseason.
THE CW ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE FOR 2009-2010 SEASON
A NEW SEASON OF TV TO TALK ABOUT LAUNCHES IN THE FALL WITH RETURNING HITS "GOSSIP GIRL," "90210" AND "AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL," ALONG WITH HIGHLY ANTICIPATED NEW SERIES "MELROSE PLACE," "THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE" AND "THE VAMPIRE DIARIES"
Monday Night Stays Strong with Winning Team of Hit Dramas "Gossip Girl" and "One Tree Hill"
Tuesday Night: "90210" Returns for a Second Season in The Zip, Followed By New Updated Version of Iconic Drama "Melrose Place"
On Wednesdays, "America's Next Top Model" Leads Into New Fashion-Fueled Drama "The Beautiful Life" From Producer Ashton Kutcher
New Drama "The Vampire Diaries" From Producers Kevin Williamson ("Dawson's Creek") and Julie Plec ("Kyle XY") Teams with "Supernatural" For a Spine-Tingling Thursday Lineup
Fan-Favorite "Smallville" Moves to Friday Night, Followed by an Encore of "America's Next Top Model"
New Drama Premieres Midseason: "Parental Discretion Advised"
May 21, 2009 (New York, New York) - The CW Network unveiled the schedule for its 2009-2010 season today at a presentation for advertisers, affiliates and national media in the Theater at Madison Square Garden. The announcement was made by Dawn Ostroff, President of Entertainment, The CW.
"In just three years, The CW has become TV to talk about, with culturally current, quality programming," said Ostroff. "Next fall, we will have great flow from Monday through Friday, starting with the Monday pairing of Gossip Girl' and One Tree Hill,' which made The CW one of the top destinations for young women this season. Tuesday night gives us a perfect match with 90210' and Melrose Place.' And what could be better than our Wednesday night shows from Tyra Banks and Ashton Kutcher the all-model lineup of America's Next Top Model' and The Beautiful Life.' On Thursdays, The Vampire Diaries' taps into the continuing fascination young women have with all things vampire, and makes the perfect lead-in for Supernatural,' which is coming off its strongest year ever. Moving Smallville' to Fridays gives us a major player with a loyal fan base to kick off the night. Top all that off with our heartwarming and humorous midseason drama Parental Discretion Advised,' from writer/producer Liz Tigelaar, and we have a full slate of great programming to keep our viewers watching, chatting, texting and tweeting all next season."
On Monday, the powerhouse combination of GOSSIP GIRL and ONE TREE HILL will remain in place. Last fall, this winning team made The CW the Number One network with women, and sent Monday night ratings up 118 percent in women 18-34. GOSSIP GIRL, which continues to be one of the most talked-about shows on television, will return to its 8:00-9:00 p.m. slot, followed by ONE TREE HILL from 9:00-10:00 p.m.
On Tuesday, 90210 returns for its sophomore season in the 8:00-9:00 p.m. timeslot. Last season, 90210 gave The CW its highest-rated series premiere ever and improved the 8:00 p.m. time period by 35 percent in women 18-34. The highly anticipated, updated version of the 1990s monster-hit drama MELROSE PLACE will premiere in the 9:00-10:00 p.m. timeslot. The new MELROSE PLACE features a dynamic ensemble of up-and-coming stars, along with two original cast members reprising the roles they made famous: Laura Leighton as Sydney Andrews and Thomas Calabro as Dr. Michael Mancini. MELROSE PLACE promises to deliver all the backstabbing and sizzle of the original series. And, as they did once before, 90210 and MELROSE PLACE will combine for a great night of television.
On Wednesday, AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL returns in its successful 8:00-9:00 p.m. timeslot, followed by the glamorous new drama THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE. Last season, AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL ranked second in its time period with young women. Tyra Banks is one of the few women who is seen regularly on both daytime and primetime television. Beginning this fall, The CW's daytime block will feature two hours of THE TYRA BANKS SHOW, with an encore episode from 3:00-4:00 p.m. and an original episode from 4:00-5:00 p.m. AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL and THE TYRA BANKS SHOW provide perfect symmetry and a natural fit for The CW brand by targeting the same audience in both primetime and daytime.
New drama THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE joins TOP MODEL on Wednesdays. From producers Ashton Kutcher, Jason Goldberg, Karey Burke, Mike Kelley and Carol Barbee, the fashion-based series gives viewers an exciting, behind-the-scenes glimpse at the cutthroat world of a group of young, beautiful and very sexy models living together in a models' residence in New York City. The show features a stunning ensemble cast, featuring Sara Paxton ("Last House on the Left"), Mischa Barton ("The O.C.") and supermodel Elle Macpherson ("Friends"). Together, AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL and THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE will be television's most fashionable night.
Thursdays go Goth with the new teaming of THE VAMPIRE DIARIES from 8:00-9:00 p.m., followed by SUPERNATURAL in the 9:00-10:00 p.m. hour. Based on the best-selling series of books, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES is the story of two vampire brothers obsessed with the same beautiful girl, and battling to control the fate of an entire town. Starring Nina Dobrev ("DeGrassi: The Next Generation"), Paul Wesley ("Mad Men"), Ian Somerhalder ("Lost") and Steven R. McQueen ("Everwood"), THE VAMPIRE DIARIES makes the perfect new lead-in to SUPERNATURAL. Last season, SUPERNATURAL's Winchester brothers gave the network ratings growth across key young demos, despite the highly competitive timeslot.
Big changes are in store on Fridays when SMALLVILLE relocates to the 8:00-9:00 p.m. hour, bringing young viewers from Thursday into Friday nights. With non-stop action and classic DC Comics characters from Lois Lane to Doomsday, SMALLVILLE continues to give loyal viewers the stories and characters they love.
The heartwarming and humorous drama PARENTAL DISCRETION ADVISED will premiere midseason. From writer/producer Liz Tigelaar, ("Brothers and Sisters"), PARENTAL DISCRETION ADVISED is the story of a young girl who finds her biological parents and how that discovery changes all their lives. The show stars Britt Robertson ("Swingtown"), Kristoffer Polaha ("Mad Men"), Shiri Appleby ("E.R.") and Kerr Smith ("Eli Stone").
MONDAY
8:00-9:00 P.M. "GOSSIP GIRL"
Returning for its third season, GOSSIP GIRL is a one-hour drama based on an exclusive group of privileged teens on Manhattan's Upper East Side whose lives revolve around the blog of the all-knowing albeit ultra-secretive Gossip Girl. No one knows Gossip Girl's identity, but everyone in this exclusive and complicated vicious circle relies on her website and text messages for the latest scoop. The series stars Blake Lively as Serena van der Woodsen, Leighton Meester as Blair Waldorf, Penn Badgley as Dan Humphrey, Chace Crawford as Nate Archibald, Taylor Momsen as Jenny Humphrey, Ed Westwick as Chuck Bass, Jessica Szohr as Vanessa Abrams, Kelly Rutherford as Lily van der Woodsen and Matthew Settle as Rufus Humphrey. Filmed in New York and based on the popular series of young-adult novels by Cecily von Ziegesar, GOSSIP GIRL is from Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios with executive producers Josh Schwartz ("Chuck," "The O.C."), Stephanie Savage ("The O.C."), Bob Levy ("Privileged"), Leslie Morgenstein ("Privileged"), John Stephens ("Gilmore Girls," "The O.C."), and co-executive producer Joshua Safran.
9:00-10:00 P.M. "ONE TREE HILL"
In season seven of ONE TREE HILL our beloved characters learn the struggle to live an exceptional life doesn't end once you've achieved your dreams. Whether they found true love, answered a call to greatness, or sought redemption for sins of the past, nothing that's come before compares to the challenges our characters now face to keep their dreams alive, their friendships intact and their lives full in the place they call home. ONE TREE HILL was created by Mark Schwahn and is executive produced by Schwahn, Joe Davola, Greg Prange, Mike Tollin and Brian Robbins. ONE TREE HILL is a Mastermind Laboratories and Tollin/Robbins Production in association with Warner Bros. Television.
TUESDAY
8:00-9:00 P.M. "90210"
The second season of "90210" focuses on the West Beverly group as they begin their all-important Junior year. They'll go through all the ordinary teenage struggles and triumphs crushes, sexual discovery, academic pressure, evolving friendships, shunning and isolation, love and relationships, family issues, SATs, STDs, a desire to fit in, a desire to stand out, fear and humiliation, joy and exultation but they'll do so in the extraordinary world of LA a world of movie stars and overnight success, glamour and glitz, surfing and sunshine; a city where the American dream is writ large in the Hills and yet failure could come around any corner of the Boulevard of Broken Dreams. We'll follow Naomi, the well-meaning, but delightfully narcissistic rich girl with a heart of cubic zirconium; Adrianna, the gifted, artistic drama queen whose personal life is as dramatic as any role she could hope to play; Silver, the outspoken free spirit who marches to the beat of her own drum machine; Annie, the good girl from Kansas who has gotten a bit lost in the land of Oz; Dixon, her charming, good-natured brother who adapts easily to any challenging situation and yet is still struggling to find his own voice; Navid, whose geeky charm makes all the Blaze girls swoon; and Liam, the troubled New York transplant who abhors the decadent materialistic world of Beverly Hills. These stories could only happen in LA...and only on "90210." The series stars Rob Estes as Harry Wilson, Lori Loughlin as Debbie Wilson, Shenae Grimes as Annie Wilson, Tristan Wilds as Dixon Wilson, AnnaLynne McCord as Naomi Clark, Ryan Eggold as Ryan Matthews, Jessica Stroup as Silver, Michael Steger as Navid Shirazi, Jessica Lowndes as Adrianna Tate-Duncan and Matt Lanter as Liam Court. 90210 is produced by CBS Television Studios with executive producer Rebecca Sinclair.
9:00-10:00 P.M. "MELROSE PLACE" (New Series)
In an elegant Spanish-style apartment building in the trendy Melrose neighborhood of Los Angeles, a diverse group of 20-somethings have formed a close-knit surrogate family. Sydney Andrews (Laura Leighton, the original "Melrose Place") is the landlady, still beautiful at 40, and a central figure in the lives of all her tenants, especially handsome and rebellious David Breck (Shaun Sipos, "Shark"). Sydney started an affair with David despite her turbulent history with his estranged father, Dr. Michael Mancini (Thomas Calabro, the original "Melrose Place"). Both father and son learned through experience that Sydney was not above using blackmail to control people. Another tenant, high-powered publicist Ella Simms (Katie Cassidy, "Supernatural"), once considered Sydney her mentor, but their friendship was destroyed by betrayal, and Sydney threatened to evict Ella and ruin her career. Sydney also played a pivotal role in the career of Auggie Kirkpatrick (Colin Egglesfield, "All My Children"). After they met at an AA meeting, she became Auggie's sponsor and encouraged his dream to become a chef. Now a successful sous chef at the trendy restaurant Coal, Auggie has been avoiding Sydney since she began drinking again. The other tenants include Lauren Yung (Stephanie Jacobsen, "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles"), a medical student in desperate need of money to pay her student loans, and Jonah Miller (Michael Rady, "Swingtown"), an aspiring filmmaker who has just proposed to his live-in girlfriend Riley Richmond (Jessica Lucas, "Cloverfield"), a first-grade teacher. The newest tenant, 18-year-old Violet Foster (Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, "7th Heaven"), has just arrived in LA with her own secret connection to Sydney. When a bloody body is found floating in the courtyard pool, David is the leading suspect. However, as the police are soon to discover, almost everyone living at Melrose Place had a reason to want the deceased out of the way. An updated version of the popular 1990s series, MELROSE PLACE is from CBS Television Studios with executive producers Todd Slavkin & Darren Swimmer ("Smallville"). Oscar-winner Davis Guggenheim ("An Inconvenient Truth") is the director and executive producer of the pilot.
WEDNESDAY
8:00-9:00 P.M. "AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL"
Returning with its thirteenth and fourteenth cycles, the runaway runway hit series stars Tyra Banks. The show gives real people an opportunity to prove that they can make it in the high-stress, high-stakes world of supermodeling. With mentoring by Tyra Banks and exposure to high-profile fashion-industry gurus, young women of various backgrounds, shapes and sizes must endure a highly accelerated modeling boot camp and face weekly tests to determine who will make the cut as they vie for a professional modeling contract. The executive producers are Ken Mok ("Making the Band"), Tyra Banks and Daniel Soiseth ("Hell's Kitchen"). The reality series was created by Tyra Banks and developed by Mok and Kenya Barris. AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL is produced by 10 by 10 Entertainment in association with Bankable Productions.
9:00-10:00 P.M. "THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE" (New Series)
The life of a high-fashion model appears glamorous and sexy, but as every new model quickly learns, behind the beautiful faade is a world of insecurity and cutthroat competition. Two teenage models who are about to discover this world for themselves are Raina Collins (Sara Paxton, "Last House on the Left"), a stunning beauty with a secret past, and Chris Andrews (Benjamin Hollingsworth, "The Line"), a strikingly handsome Iowa farm boy. When Raina makes an unforgettable impression at a show introducing the new line from designer Zac Posen (appearing in a cameo role), she steals the spotlight from her friend Sonja (Mischa Barton, "The O.C."). Sonja has been out of the country for mysterious reasons and is now desperate to reclaim her standing as the reigning supermodel. While Raina and Sonja live at the top of the fashion food chain, Chris is starting at the bottom, having just been discovered by agent Simon Lockridge (newcomer Dusan Dukic) of the Covet Modeling Agency, which is owned by former supermodel Claudia Foster (Elle Macpherson, "Friends"). At his first photo shoot, Chris' inexperience almost derails his career until Raina comes to his rescue, showing him how to relax and work the camera. That afternoon, Raina brings Chris to the "models' residence" where she lives along with other young hopefuls, including Marissa Delfina (Ashley Madekwe, "Secret Diary of a Call Girl"), Egan (Jordan Woolley, "As The World Turns"), Issac (Corbin Bleu, "High School Musical 2") and the current alpha-male-model known as Kai (Nico Tortorella, "Twelve"). At an exclusive industry party that night, Chris is again impressed by Raina's generosity when she steps aside to make sure Sonja lands a job that will resurrect her career. However, after an ugly scene with Simon, Chris is left to question whether he can survive in this world of dangerous excess and fleeting fame. THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE is from Katalyst Films in association with CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Ashton Kutcher & Jason Goldberg ("True Beauty," "Punk'd"), Karey Burke ("True Beauty"), Mike Kelley ("Swingtown," "Jericho") and Carol Barbee ("Swingtown," "Jericho"). Christian Duguay ("Coco Chanel") directed the pilot.
THURSDAY
8:00-9:00 P.M. "THE VAMPIRE DIARIES" (New Series)
Four months after the tragic car accident that killed their parents, 17-year-old Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev, "DeGrassi: The Next Generation") and her 15-year-old brother, Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen, "Everwood") are still trying to cope with their grief and move on with their lives. Elena has always been the star student; beautiful, popular and involved with school and friends, but now she finds herself struggling to hide her sadness from the world. As the school year begins, Elena and her friends are fascinated by a handsome and mysterious new student, Stefan Salvatore (Paul Wesley, "Army Wives"). Stefan and Elena are immediately drawn to one another, and Elena has no way of knowing that Stefan is a centuries-old vampire, struggling to live peacefully among humans, while his brother Damon (Ian Somerhalder, "Lost") is the embodiment of vampire violence and brutality. Now these two vampire brothers - one good, one evil - are at war for Elena's soul and for the souls of her friends, family and all the residents of the small town of Mystic Falls, Virginia. Based on the series of books by L. J. Smith, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES is from Alloy Entertainment and Bonanza Productions Inc in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios with executive producers Kevin Williamson ("Dawson's Creek," "I Know What You Did Last Summer"), Julie Plec ("Kyle XY," "Wasteland"), Leslie Morgenstein ("Gossip Girl," "Privileged") and Bob Levy ("Gossip Girl," "Privileged"). Marcos Siega ("Dexter") directed the pilot.
9:00-10:00 P.M "SUPERNATURAL"
Returning for its fifth season, this haunting series follows Sam and Dean Winchester, two brothers bound by tragedy and blood to their dangerous, other-worldly mission. This past season, Dean was rescued from Hell by the angel Castiel, who told Dean he was meant to avert the impending Apocalypse, as well as Lucifer rising from Hell. As the brothers were caught up in the epic battle between angels and demons, Sam and Dean found their relationship was strained almost to the breaking point until ultimately, both brothers were betrayed. Now, in season five, they must battle the Devil himself. The series stars Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester, Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester and Misha Collins as Castiel). SUPERNATURAL is from Warner Bros. Television in association with Wonderland Sound and Vision, with executive producers McG ("Charlie's Angels," "The O.C."), Eric Kripke ("Boogeyman") and Robert Singer ("Midnight Caller").
FRIDAY
8:00-9:00 P.M. "SMALLVILLE"
Returning for its ninth season, last season SMALLVILLE was filled with twists and surprises, starting with the disappearance of Lex Luthor. However, someone quickly arrived to take his place the enticing Tess Mercer. As Tess maneuvered her way through town, she flirted with her old flame Oliver Queen, discovered Clark's true identity and unleashed a new world of danger. As if that hurdle wasn't enough for Clark, he also met his greatest match Doomsday. SMALLVILLE explored the origins of Doomsday, revealing a sympathetic guy named Davis Bloome, who battled an inner demon the Doomsday character fans have loved to hate for years. When Clark wasn't busy battling the beast, he was knee-deep in work at the Daily Planet. Last season threw Clark and Lois Lane together literally across the desk from each other. As Clark's persona as the cub Planet reporter emerged, so did his feelings for Lois, the fated love of his life. The series stars Tom Welling as Clark Kent, Allison Mack as Chloe Sullivan, Erica Durance as Lois Lane, Justin Hartley as Oliver Queen and Cassidy Freeman as Tess Mercer. Reinterpreting the Superman mythology from its roots, SMALLVILLE was developed for television by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar ("Shanghai Noon," "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor"), based on the DC Comics characters. Copy/pasted from Futon Critic Kelly Souders & Brian Peterson serve as executive producers, along with James Marshall, Mike Tollin, Brian Robbins and Joe Davola. The series is produced by Tollin/Robbins Productions and Warner Bros. Television. SUPERMAN was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.
9:00-10:00 P.M. "AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL" (Encore Presentation).
MIDSEASON
"PARENTAL DISCRETION ADVISED" (New Series)
After spending all of her 15 years bouncing from one foster family to another in Portland, Oregon, Lux (Britt Robertson, "Swingtown") has decided it's time to take control of her life and become an emancipated minor. Her journey through the legal maze leads Lux to her biological father, 30-something Nate "Baze" Bazile (Kristoffer Polaha, "Mad Men"), who owns a bar, lives like an aging frat-boy with two slacker roommates, and is astonished to learn that he has a teenage daughter. Lux is equally astonished when Baze reveals that her mother is Cate Cassidy (Shiri Appleby, "E.R."), a star on the local "Morning Madness" radio show, along with her on-air partner and real-life boyfriend, Ryan Thomas (Kerr Smith, "Eli Stone"). Lux has been listening to Cate's voice on the radio as long as she can remember, so she feels an instant connection with the mom she's never met. Baze takes Lux to meet Cate, who is shocked and saddened to learn that Lux has grown up in foster care, but thrilled to finally meet her beautiful daughter. When a judge decides that Lux isn't ready for emancipation and unexpectedly grants temporary joint custody to Baze and Cate, they agree to try to get past the awkwardness and make a belated attempt to give Lux the family she deserves. PARENTAL DISCRETION ADVISED is produced by Mojo Films in association with CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Liz Tigelaar ("Brothers and Sisters," "What About Brian") and Gary Fleder ("October Road"). Gary Fleder directed the pilot.
Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.
Wondering just what Season Three of NBC's Chuck will be like? For one thing the series' core trio isn't going anywhere. "Yes. Chuck, Sarah, and Casey are in all episodes," said Chuck co-creator/executive producer Josh Schwartz. Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello catches up with Schwartz to find out about Season Three, budget cuts, Subway, returning supporting cast members ("We have plans for Anna to return"), and about being off the air for ten months. "It was really a tough choice that the network faced: Put us on Friday or [hold us until] midseason," said Schwartz. "I really believe Chuck is the little show that could. Our fans are clearly passionate, clearly loyal, and hopefully all we'll do is get them more and more [excited] for our return. And we'll come up with fun ways of stoking the fans throughout the fall. We also have something very, very fun planned for Comic-Con this year." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
One cast member who won't be returning for Season Two of FOX drama Fringe is Kirk Acevedo, who played FBI Agent Charlie Francis. Acevedo announced that he had been let go from the drama (due to budgetary cuts) via his Facebook profile status update, writing, "WELL BOYS AND GIRLS THEY DONE DID YER BOY WRONG! THEY FIRED ME OFF OF FRINGE, AND IVE NEVER BEEN FIRED IN MY LIFE!!!!" Series writer/producer Brad Caleb Kane confirmed the news via Twitter, saying: "They fired Kirk Acevedo? WTF?" Meanwhile, blog Oh No They Didn't has information on a casting call for Season Two of Fringe: "MID TO LATE TWENTIES. FBI AGENT SHE IS ATTRACTIVE, BRASH, OUTSPOKEN,QUICK-WITTED AND CAPABLE. CATHERINE HAS A STRONG PERSONAL CENTER THAT COMES FROM A DEEP CORE BELIEF IN THE WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE. (RECURRING WITH POSSIBLE OPTION FOR SR) PLEASE SUBMIT ALL ETHNICITIES"
Chris Diamantopoulos (The Starter Wife) has been cast as a series regular on Day Eight of FOX's 24. He'll play Rob Weiss, the "argumentative and tough new Chief of Staff to President Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones)," replacing Ethan Kanin (Bob Gunton), President Taylor's current Chief of Staff on 24. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
Sarah Chalke likely won't be returning to Scrubs full-time next season. "I would've had Sarah in a heartbeat," Scrubs creator/executive producer Bill Lawrence told Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "I think she's got enough going on in her career [right now]. I'd say it's 50-50 she's in some episodes. I know she'll at least be in one or two." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
Producers of Bravo's reality hit The Real Housewives of New York City are reportedly negotiating deals with six replacements who could become the stars of the series' third season, should the network not be able to reach an agreement with the series' current stars, who are allegedly asking for additional compensation for their participation on Housewives. It is still possible, however, that all six women from the first two seasons could return for Season Three. (New York Post)
TNT unveiled a slew of series in development at yesterday's upfront presentation, including an untitled alien invasion drama pilot from executive producer Steven Spielberg and writer Robert Rodat about a group of everyday men and women who battle the invading aliens, legal drama Class Action from executive producers Steven Bochco and Stephen Godchaux about an unlucky attorney who fights the good fight for the disenfranchised, drama Zapata, Texas from executive producer Kyra Sedgwick and executive producer/director Kevin Bacon about the new sheriff of a small Texas border town, an untitled family drama from Roseanne creator Matt Williams about a middle American family, an untitled period noir drama from writer Daniel Pyne about a private detective in 1954 Los Angeles, Pastor Jazz, starring Charles S. Dutton as a minister who uses music to touch the hearts of his congregation, Macalister, about a professor at a school for boys that serves the wealthy and privileged, and Proof, about an eccentric neuroscientist who uses his expertise to help law enforcement solve tough cases. (Variety)
The New York Times' Bill Carter takes a look at why several networks are extending the life of canceled series by picking them up from their rivals, such as CBS' decision to pick up Medium after NBC passed on the series. Carter points to a worrying trend that has networks making programming decisions based on syndication money or DVD sales for their studio side. "The conflict over Medium was emblematic of what transpired at every network this week, when money and ownership were major factors in scheduling decisions," writes Carter. "CBS had no trouble committing to ordering a full season of Medium, which NBC had resisted, because as owner of the show it will benefit financially from the future sale of the episodes of the show produced for the coming season." (New York Times)
MTV will launch Season Twenty-Two of The Real World, set in Cancun, on June 24th. (Variety)
Wondering what Georgina's statement at the end of the season finale of Gossip Girl meant now that actress Michelle Trachtenberg's new medical series Mercy was picked up by NBC? Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello says that Gossip Girl producers "thought ahead and made sure Trachtenberg negotiated a three-episode Gossip Girl 'out' in her Mercy contract. You didn't really think the Georgina-Blair roommate thing would last longer than that, did you?" (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)
National Geographic will launch Hooked as an ongoing series beginning June 29th. Series, hosted by Zeb Hogan, explores how various cultures "approach fishing (and underwater conservation) while highlighting the most dramatic catches." Cabler will also return series World's Toughest Fixes on June 4th and Locked Up Abroad on July 15th. (Variety)
One the most eagerly awaited projects of this development season was ABC's reinvention of the classic 1980s sci-fi cult series V.
I had the opportunity last night to watch the gripping and electrifying pilot for ABC's new V, from studio Warner Bros. Television, and was completely sucked in by the promising vision and deft skill of the pilot installment, which sets up a slew of intriguing possibilities for the ongoing series.
For those of you not in the know, V, originally created by Kenneth Johnson, was a series about an alien invasion that aired on NBC during the 1984-1985 season following a successful run as two separate mini-series. Likewise, this new incarnation of V, overseen by The 4400 creator Scott Peters also tells the story of the arrival of an alien race to Earth via behemoth spacecrafts that appear out of nowhere to hover above 29 cities around the world.
Calling themselves The Visitors, their leader Anna (Firefly's Morena Baccarin) quickly makes contact with Earth's leaders to deliver a message (in multiple languages) proclaiming that they come in peace and, in exchange for the use of Earth's water which they need to survive, they will provide the human population with technology, the curing of 65 different diseases, and universal health care.
After all, the world right now is not in a good place. Beset by economic meltdown, multiple wars, and rising discontent, our planet desperately needs a savior and The Visitors seem to have arrived at just the right time, bringing with them the very tools to our salvation. Or have they?
However, despite the populace's open-armed acceptance of The Visitors, not everyone falls under the spell of The Vistors' charismatic charms and studied propaganda. FBI Agent Erica Evans (Lost's superb Elizabeth Mitchell) and her partner Dale Maddox (Dollhouse's Alan Tudyk) are investigating a terrorist cell that could have links to the arrival of The Visitors but Erica quickly learns that the cell, whose chatter has increased after the Visitors turned up, may have informants within the FBI itself. Erica must also contend with her rambunctious teenage son Tyler (America's Logan Huffman) who feels himself drawn to The Visitor's cause. Against his mother's wishes, Tyler is tempted to join The Visitors' Young Ambassadors program and spread the "message of hope" that The Visitors claim to bring, partially because of his blatant attraction to Lisa (Smallville's Laura Vandervoort), an alluring young Visitor guide assigned to the New York mothership.
Elsewhere, Ryan Nichols (The Perfect Holiday's Morris Chestnut) is buying an engagement ring for his fiancée Valerie Stevens (Cashmere Mafia's Lourdes Benedicto) when The Visitors arrive. He seems extremely uneasy about the presence of The Visitors and is quickly drawn back into a conflict that he wants no part of when he is contacted by members of a covert group that could have ties to the terrorist cell that Erica and Dale are investigating. And then there's dashing news anchor Chad Decker (The Nine's Scott Wolf) who is able to use The Visitor's arrival to leverage a better profile for himself when Anna selects him for an exclusive on-air interview. Will greed overwhelm his instincts to question The Visitors' motives, especially when Anna tells him that they "can't be painted in a negative light"? Or will be fall victim to the lures of fame and fortune?
Meanwhile, Father Jack Landry (The 4400's Joel Gretsch) finds himself in a difficult position, having to explain the co-existence of a divine presence and an alien race among us. His job is complicated by the fact that the congregation of his small Manhattan church has suddenly ballooned with people turning to religion in the face of fear and uncertainty and his superiors are pressuring Father Jack to toe the party line and accept The Visitors as a miracle in itself. But Jack worries that gratefulness can quickly turn to worship... and worship to devotion. His fears are realized when he receives a package from a mysterious wounded man who dies after passing along a mission to Jack: he should fear The Visitors and take the package to a specific address.
SPOILER ALERT! It happens to be the very same address where Erica and Dale are themselves headed, after receiving a tipoff at a crime scene about a possible meeting of a terrorist cell. Erica agrees to go in undercover to the meet and, after meeting Jack, discovers just who these people are in a fantastic twist: they are members of the underground human resistance and membership to their group is depending on various conditions. One, that the candidates have been referred by someone they trust. And two, that they agree to be anesthetized and have a section of skin behind their ears peeled back.
Why? To prove that they are human as The Visitors are actually a reptilian race that has successfully cloned human skin, which they wear as camouflage. Worse still: The Visitors haven't just arrived, after all. They've been here for decades and have been fomenting dissent and chaos on the planet for years, destabilizing the markets, creating unnecessary wars, stirring up paranoia and persecution. The fact that they've now revealed themselves is a sign that they are moving into the final steps of their plan. That terrorist group that Erica and Dale were investigating? It's a sleeper cell of Visitors.
I won't spoil what happens next (sorry, I'm not going to give everything away!) but I will say that what follows is a rather obvious reveal about Dale's, er, heritage (which can be glimpsed at in the below trailer), followed by a surprising plot twist that sets up a new direction for the series and creates an interesting situation that, I'm sure, will be mined in quite a lot of detail as the series progresses.
Coming off of her run as Juliet on Lost, the sensational Elizabeth Mitchell is absolutely captivating here as tough-as-nails Erica Evans, a woman scarred by the breakup of her marriage, emotionally distant towards her son, and driven by her job as a federal agent. It's impossible not to root for Erica as she kicks down doors, solves crimes, and seriously kicks ass. It's especially nice to see Mitchell, typically more reactive as Juliet, take a firm, proactive role here. Mitchell and Alan Tudyk make a hell of a team and it's hard not to jump with joy the first time they appear on screen together at the start of the pilot. Joel Gretsch is fantastic as Father Jack, a man torn in half by questions of faith; you wouldn't ordinarily think to cast Gretsch as a man of the cloth but the casting plays against type here and gives this priest a visceral and virile quality not normally seen in portrayals of priesthood.
Scott Wolf is perfectly cast as the suave womanizing news anchor Chad and he oozes the confidence and ego-centric charisma of a man used to getting his way. Morris Chestnut gives a subtle performance as a man caught in a battle he's fought to stay out of for years and find himself pulled between duty and his love for his fiancée. (Sadly, Lourdes Benedicto doesn't have much to do here but act suspicious and cry, but I am hoping that she has more to do as the series progresses.)
And I can't say enough wonderful things about Morena Baccarin's glossy performance here. She seems to radiate a Zen-like calm as Anna, the charismatic and polished leader of The Visitors but there's also an insidious reptilian quality to her as well. The way in which she moves her head and body speak to this effect and her rapid blinking is not only apt for the truth of what lies beneath her skin but it also gives Anna an uncharacteristic tell that is utterly appealing. (I was worried about Baccarin cutting her beautiful locks but her shorn hair works really well here, allowing her show off her classical good looks.)
While the characters aren't as deeply sketched as they ought to be, Scott Peters manages to set up a remarkable amount of conflict during the forty-odd minutes of this pilot episode and he creates enough characterization to set up the players in this sprawling story effectively enough that you're anxious to see just what happens to them next. (The one exception seems to be Logan Huffman, but I am hoping he can grow into the role of Tyler.)
What Peters does do extremely well here is imbue the pilot of V with an immense amount of promise and potential. After seeing just the first intoxicating installment, I'm already delirious with excitement about seeing just what happens next. Like The 4400, V excels at juggling multiple characters, each with their own storylines, and a number of subplots. There's a little bit of exposition at the start and, as I indicated earlier, the characters need some more shading but for a pilot (and one with the run time decidedly under an hour), I think that V perfectly sets up what looks to be an exciting and thought-provoking sci-fi series.
Ultimately, this reimagining of V captures the essence of the original while moving it firmly into our post-9/11 reality and it seeks to answer questions about race, religion, duty, family, compromise, and co-existence. Personally, I can't wait for midseason to find out just what Peters has up his sleeve for these characters and the coming battle.
I have to say that ABC may have offered the most memorable upfront presentation in recent years, not because of the self-deprecation comedy stylings of Jimmy Kimmel but because they pulled off what many thought was impossible: they showed an entire pilot to advertisers and press. At the upfront itself.
Yesterday's upfront presentation, masterfully overseen by Anne Sweeney and Steve McPherson, led up to this groundbreaking moment by first showcasing the entire first act of its new drama series Flash Forward (a treat in itself) but then ABC went one step further by screening the full pilot episode of its new comedy Modern Family.
Modern Family, from creators/executive producers Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan (who most recently collaborated on FOX's short-lived comedy Back to You), tells the story of three very different families living in suburban America. Told in a mockumentary style that's clearly influenced by the work of director Christopher Guest, Modern Family seeks to shine a light on just how neurotic and idiosyncratic--and at the same time how reassuringly normal--every family is, no matter what its makeup.
This winning series follows the lives of three diverse families: there's Jay (Ed O'Neill), an older man who has taken a younger bride in Gloria (Sofía Vergara) and become a reluctant father to her idealistically romantic young son Manny (Rico Rodriguez). There's a traditional nuclear family, overseen by Phil (Ty Burrell), a dad who's far less cool than he believes himself to be, and Claire (Julie Bowen), a mom who struggles to keep her family moving in a straight line. Their kids, Haley (Sarah Hyland), Luke (Nolan Gould), and Alex (Ariel Winter) are a motley bunch, prone to getting their heads stuck in banisters and accidentally shooting one another with BB pellets. (In the pilot episode, 15-year-old daughter Haley brings home a high school senior and chaos--and painful hilarity--ensues.) Finally, there's gay couple Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and the doughy Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) who return from Vietnam with an adopted baby daughter Lily in tow.
I have to say that I was completely captivated by the pilot episode, directed by Jason Winer, which offered a nice blend of character introduction, comedic timing, and a nice twist ending that neatly ties the action together.
The cast is a real treat, with each of the actors perfectly cast in their roles. The role of Cameron could have been a stereotypical gay role but Stonestreet plays it (no pun intended) straight, offering a performance that's as naturalistic as it is nuanced, even as Cameron retains his sense of a dramatic entrance. (Cue the soundtrack to The Lion King.) The same holds for the talented Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who gives Mitchell an uptight, severe personality that's at odds with the messiness of real life he's about to encounter as a new parent; yet Ferguson's Mitchell never comes off as unlikable, despite a rant on an airplane about cream puffs. Sofia Vergara is hilarious as the sexy Gloria, who tosses off random facts about her past life and previous husband without filtering herself. Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen are welcome additions to any cast and they are well balanced as a married couple whose mission in life seems to be raising their kids so that they don't get pregnant or shoot anyone. (Seeing Burrell's solution to son Luke's inadvertent shooting of his sister is hilarious.) Additionally, it's fantastic as well to see the curmudgeonly Ed O'Neill back as a series regular; here, his gruff demeanor and caustic comments belie a, well, gruff interior as well.
Unlike NBC's Parks and Recreation, which doesn't quite know how to use the mockumentary format to its advantage, Levitan and Lloyd employ the usual tricks of the trade: hand-held cameras, talking heads, etc. but they use them significantly better here than the writer/producers of Parks and Recreation. As it's the pilot installment, the talking heads--in which the couples are paired together, talking about themselves and their families--serve to introduce the characters and explore their relationships, but the reveals are always based in humor and never feel overtly expositional. (One rather humorous example: Gloria recounts the small village that she hails from, turning to her husband to remind her how to say in English what her town was number one in. "Murders," he says succinctly. "Ah, yes, the murders," purrs Gloria, who later recounts how she and her former husband fell out of a window while making love.)
Modern Family is one part of ABC's new comedy strategy on Wednesday evenings, where it will launch a two-hour block of half-hours that also includes fellow family comedies Hank and The Middle, which separately boast Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton, both of whom worked with Levitan and Lloyd on Back to You. Despite the marquee names of Modern Family's lead-in series, I can't help but root for Modern Family after falling for this series' winning combination of biting wit, subtle humor, and heart. Ultimately, this is one family I'm more than happy to spend time with each week.
Modern Family airs Wednesdays at 9 pm ET/PT this fall on ABC.
Welcome to Day Three of the 2009 network upfronts. Up next is CBS, which has unveiled its fall schedule to advertisers.
Not too many surprises for CBS, which once again sticks with overall stability and picks up a bunch of new drama series (and one lone comedy holdout).
Turning around the shortest series cancellation ever, CBS has picked up supernatural drama series Medium for another season. Medium, produced by CBS Television Studio, had been axed yesterday by NBC and will now shift networks and join fellow chiller drama Ghost Whisperer on Friday nights.
The network also ordered several new series including comedy Accidentally on Purpose, legal drama The Good Wife, medical dramas Miami Trauma and Three Rivers, NCIS: Los Angeles, and unscripted series Arranged Marriage and Undercover Boss.
While not on the schedule, Canadian co-production Flashpoint will return--in Summer 2010--and CBS will launch another CTV co-pro, The Bridge, in midseason. Also scheduled to join the schedule in the spring: Miami Trauma, Undercover Boss, Arranged Marriage, and Rules of Engagement.
UPDATED: The full press release from CBS, announcing the schedule, full descriptions for the new series, and photography can be found below.
CBS FALL 2009-10 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE
MONDAY 8-8:30 pm: How I Met Your Mother 8:30-9 pm: Accidentally On Purpose 9-9:30 pm: Two and a Half Men 9:30-10 pm: The Big Bang Theory 10-11 pm: CSI Miami
TUESDAY 8-9 pm: NCIS 9-10 pm: NCIS: Los Angeles 10-11 pm: The Good Wife
WEDNESDAY 8-8:30 pm: Old Christine 8:30-9 pm: Gary Unmarried 9-10 pm: Criminal Minds 10-11 pm: CSI:NY
SATURDAY 8-9 pm: Crime Drama Encores 9-10 pm: Crime Drama Encores 10-11 pm: 48 Hours
SUNDAY 7-8 pm: 60 Minutes 8-9 pm: The Amazing Race 9-10 pm: Three Rivers 10-11 pm: Cold Case
MIDSEASON: Miami Trauma, The Bridge, Flashpoint, Undercover Boss, Arranged Marriage, Rules of Engagement
For those of you keeping track of such things, here's how the CBS schedule stacks up.
Returning Series: 48 Hours, 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race, The Big Bang Theory, Big Brother, Cold Case, Criminal Minds, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: New York, Flashpoint, Gary Unmarried, How I Met Your Mother, The Mentalist, NCIS, New Adventures of Old Christine, NUMB3RS, Rules of Engagement, Survivor, Two and a Half Men
New Series: Accidentally on Purpose, Arranged Marriage, The Bridge, The Good Wife, Medium*, Miami Trauma, NCIS: Los Angeles, Three Rivers, Undercover Boss
New Timeslots for Returning Series: The Big Bang Theory, Cold Case, How I Met Your Mother, Medium (new network, in fact), The Mentalist
Midseason Launches/Returns: Arranged Marriage, The Bridge, Flashpoint (Summer 2010), Miami Trauma, Rules of Engagement, Undercover Boss
Cancelled/Ended: Eleventh Hour, The Ex List, The Unit, Without a Trace, Worst Week
Reactions: Overall, a rather strong schedule from a network that thrives on consistency and stability. The new series would seem to complement their current ones, although I can't help but wonder if a double dose of Ghost Whisperer and Medium back-to-back on Fridays could be female-driven supernatural overkill.... or just the thing for Friday nights. Given the studio affiliation with Medium, it seemed natural that CBS would snap up the series when NBC balked at bringing it back once more.
A slight switcheroo with the comedies on Monday but overall the comedy block shows stability, based upon the performance of newcomer Accidentally on Purpose at 8:30 pm. How I Met Your Mother, meanwhile, relocates to 8 pm (where it landed earlier in its run) to kick off the night and provide Accidentally with a proven lead-in while The Big Bang Theory shifts later to air after Two and a Half Men.
Not sure whether shifting The Mentalist out of its highly rated berth is the strongest move, however, though CBS did seem to want to pair NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles in a two-hour block in order to properly cushion the spin-off with its predecessor as a lead-in.
Having read the script for The Good Wife, I assumed the Eye would schedule it in an earlier hour rather than at 10 pm. There's nothing in there that screams post-watershed hour and I think they would have been better off deploying it in an earlier timeslot.
I'm glad that CBS is opting to keep The Amazing Race in its Sundays at 8 pm timeslot, which I think is the absolute perfect place for the series (and an ideal way to wrap up the weekend). Plus, the combo of Three Rivers and Cold Case give the network a nice lineup that's definitely distinct from ABC's more female-driven lineup of Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters.
All in all a pretty stable schedule that doesn't deviate from CBS' usual penchant for procedural dramas and doesn't include the type of mind-boggling risk of recent seasons. (No vampires, swingers, or gangsters here.)
The full press release from CBS as well as new series descriptions can be found below.
CBS ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE
America's #1 Network Adds Four New Series to Top-Rated Lineup
New Dramas Star Chris O'Donnell and LL COOL J,
Julianna Margulies and Alex O'Loughlin
New Comedy Stars Jenna Elfman
"The Mentalist" Moves to Thursday at 10:00 PM Pairing TV's #1 New Show With TV's #1 Drama ("CSI")
"The Big Bang Theory" Moves to Mondays at 9:30 PM Forming a Comedy Power Hour With "Two and a Half Men"
Ordered for Midseason: New Dramas "Miami Trauma" and "The Bridge" New Alternative Series "Arranged Marriage" and "Undercover Boss," Comedy "Rules of Engagement"
CBS, the only major broadcast network to grow its audience in all key ratings measures this season, announced today the addition of four new series to strengthen its already top rated primetime lineup for the Fall 2009-2010 season.
The new series include three dramas and one comedy. Chris O'Donnell and LL COOL J star in NCIS: LOS ANGELES, a spinoff from the hit drama NCIS; THE GOOD WIFE stars Emmy® Award winner Julianna Margulies in a legal drama about a steadfast wife and mother who boldly returns to work as a lawyer when her husband is imprisoned for a high profile political scandal; THREE RIVERS, a medical drama that stars Alex O'Loughlin as the head of a renowned transplant surgery team, and ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE stars Golden Globe Award winner Jenna Elfman in an ensemble comedy about a successful, single journalist who accidentally gets pregnant by a much younger man.
The freshmen series will join 18 returning series on the current CBS schedule.
CBS will return the season's #1 drama/scripted program - CSI; #1 comedy - TWO AND A HALF MEN; #1 new series - THE MENTALIST and the #1 news magazine - 60 MINUTES, along with two franchise reality series - SURVIVOR and the six-time Emmy Award winner THE AMAZING RACE.
The other returning series include: THE BIG BANG THEORY, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, CSI: MIAMI, NCIS, THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE; GARY UNMARRIED, CRIMINAL MINDS, CSI: NY, GHOST WHISPERER, NUMB3RS, 48 HOURS MYSTERY and COLD CASE.
Ordered for midseason is a new fast-paced medical drama, MIAMI TRAUMA, from executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer; the new police drama THE BRIDGE; the returning comedy RULES OF ENGAGEMENT; and the new alternative series ARRANGED MARRIAGE and UNDERCOVER BOSS.
On the strength of its scripted series, and the success of its two reality franchises, CBS will win the 2008-2009 television season in viewers, its sixth victory in the past seven years, and in adults 25-54 (projected tie with Fox). CBS is the ONLY network to post ratings gains over the last season in all key measures: +12% in viewers, + 3% in adults 18-49, and +8% in adults 25-54.
This top-rated schedule will serve as the springboard to introduce four new series - all of which have established franchises as a lead-in.
The 2009-2010 schedule:
On Mondays at 8:00 PM, the critically acclaimed ensemble comedy HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER opens the night and serves as a strong lead-in for the new comedy ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE at 8:30 PM. From 9:00-10:00 PM, television's top comedy TWO AND A HALF MEN and the genius comedy THE BIG BANG THEORY form a power comedy hour. CSI: MIAMI, a perennial time period winner, completes the night at 10:00 PM.
On Tuesdays, NCIS kicks off the night at 8:00 PM, providing a seamless lead-in for its spin off NCIS: LOS ANGELES at 9:00 PM, followed by new legal drama THE GOOD WIFE at 10:00 PM.
Wednesday returns intact with the comedy block THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE and GARY UNMARRIED from 8:00-9:00 PM, as well as the crime drama tandem of CRIMINAL MINDS and CSI: NY from 9:00-11:00 PM.
On Thursdays at 8:00 PM, SURVIVOR returns to the time period it has won every year since 2004. And from 9:00-11:00 PM, CBS is pairing television's #1 drama, CSI, with television's #1 new series, THE MENTALIST.
On Friday, CBS plans to add the popular drama series MEDIUM at 9:00 PM, starring Emmy Award winner Patricia Arquette, to its top-rated Friday night lineup, forming a hauntingly compatible two-hour block with GHOST WHISPERER at 8:00 PM. NUMB3RS caps the night at 10:00 PM.
The Saturday night lineup remains intact, anchored by the night's highest-rated show, 48 HOURS MYSTERY.
As always, 60 MINUTES kicks off Sundays at 7:00 PM, followed by the six-time Emmy Award winning reality series THE AMAZING RACE at 8:00 PM, which leads into the new medical drama THREE RIVERS at 9:00 PM. The crime drama COLD CASE anchors at 10:00 PM.
The new DRAMAS:
NCIS: LOS ANGELES is a drama about the high stakes world of undercover surveillance at the Office of Special Projects (OSP), a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals that pose a threat to the nation's security. By assuming false identities and utilizing the most advanced technology, this team of highly trained agents goes deep undercover, putting their lives on the line in the field to bring down their targets. Special Agent "G" Callen (Chris O'Donnell) is a chameleon who transforms himself into whomever he needs to be to infiltrate the criminal underworld. His partner is Special Agent Sam Hanna (LL COOL J), a former U.S. Navy SEAL who has seen action in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and a surveillance expert who uses state of the art monitoring equipment to look out for those in the field and feed them crucial information. Both Callen and Hanna report to Special Agent Lara Macy (Louise Lombard), the OSP team leader responsible for directing the operations and making life-or-death decisions. Assisting the team is Special Agent Kensi Lo (Daniela Ruah), the exceptionally bright daughter of a slain Marine who lives for the adrenalin rush that comes with undercover work, and Operational Psychologist Nate Getz (Peter Cambor), adept at getting into anybody's head, profiling the target and monitoring agents' states of mind before, during and after missions. Armed with the latest in high tech gear and sent regularly into life-threatening situations, this tight-knit team relies on each other to do what is necessary to protect national interests. Shane Brennan ("NCIS") is the executive producer for CBS Television Studios.
THE GOOD WIFE is a drama starring Emmy Award winner Julianna Margulies as a wife and mother who must assume full responsibility for her family and re-enter the workforce after her husband's very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him in jail. Pushing aside the betrayal and crushing public humiliation caused by her husband Peter (Chris Noth), Alicia Florrick (Margulies) starts over by pursuing her original career as a defense attorney. As a junior associate at a prestigious Chicago law firm, she joins her longtime friend, former law school classmate and firm partner Will Gardner (Josh Charles), who is interested to see how Alicia will perform after 13 years out of the courtroom. Alicia is grateful the firm's top litigator, Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), offers to mentor her but discovers the offer has conditions and realizes she's going to need to succeed on her own merit. Alicia's main competition among the firm's 20-something new recruits is Cary (Matt Czuchry), a recent Harvard grad who is affable on the surface, but will use any means to ensure that he, not Alicia, secures the one full-time associate position that's available. Fortunately, Alicia finds an ally in Kalinda (Archie Panjabi), the firm's tough in-house investigator. Gaining confidence every day, Alicia transforms herself from embarrassed politician's scorned wife to resilient career woman, especially for the sake of providing a stable home for her children, 14-year-old Zach (Graham Phillips) and 13-year-old Grace (Makenzie Vega). For the first time in years, Alicia trades in her identity as the "good wife" and takes charge of her own destiny. Tony Scott, Ridley Scott, Robert King, Michelle King, Dee Johnson and David Zucker are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios.
THREE RIVERS is a medical drama that goes inside the emotionally complex lives of organ donors, the recipients and the surgeons at the preeminent transplant hospital in the country where every moment counts. However, dealing with donor families in their darkest hour and managing the fears and concerns of apprehensive recipients takes much more than just a sharp scalpel. Leading the elite team is Dr. Andy Yablonski (Alex O'Loughlin), the highly-skilled workaholic lead organ transplant surgeon, whose good-natured personality and sarcastic wit makes him popular with his patients and colleagues. His colleagues include Dr. Miranda Foster (Katherine Moennig), a surgical fellow with a rebellious streak and fiery temper who strives to live up to her deceased father's excellent surgical reputation; Dr. David Lee (Daniel Henney), a womanizing surgical resident who's broken as many hearts as he's replaced; Ryan Abbott (Christopher J. Hanke), the inexperienced new transplant coordinator who arranges the intricately choreographed process of quickly and carefully transporting organs from donor to patient; Dr. Sophia Jordan (Julia Ormond), the head of surgery and a dedicated medical professional; and Pam Acosta (Justina Machado), Andy's no-nonsense operating assistant and best friend. In this high stakes arena, in which every case is a race against the clock, these tenacious surgeons and medical professionals are the last hope for their patients. Carol Barbee, Curtis Hanson and Carol Fenelon are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios.
The new COMEDY:
ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE is a comedy starring Golden Globe Award winner Jenna Elfman as Billie, a single woman who finds herself "accidentally" pregnant after a one-night stand with a much younger guy, and decides to keep the baby... and the guy. A newspaper film critic, Billie is barely surviving a humiliating breakup with her charming boss, James (Grant Show), who's still trying to resume their relationship. Suddenly expecting a child with her "boy toy," Zack (Jon Foster), Billie and Zack make an arrangement: to live together platonically. Billie's party girl best friend Olivia (Ashley Jensen), and Abby (Lennon Parham), her conventional, younger married sister, eagerly look forward to the new addition and offer their own brands of advice and encouragement. But when Zack and his freeloading friends, including Davis (Nicolas Wright), start to turn her place into a frat house, Billie isn't sure if she's living with a boyfriend, a roommate, or if she just has another child to raise. Lloyd Braun, Gail Berman, Gene Stein and Claudia Lonow are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios. Pamela Fryman directed the pilot.
The new MIDSEASON DRAMAS:
THE BRIDGE is a drama about a tough and dedicated police officer who is voted to become the police union's dynamic leader. To serve the public as well as his 8,000 fellow officers, charismatic Frank Leo (Aaron Douglas) battles criminals on the street, corruption in the ranks and his own bosses. On the force is his able partner and confidante Tommy Dunn (Paul Popowich), who rides with Frank across the bridge that spans the divide between the rich and the poor in the area they patrol; Staff Sergeant Bernie Kantor (Frank Cassini), a voice of reason and moral sounding board; Jill (Inga Cadranel), a detective with a lot of attitude who is moving up the ranks; Billy (Theresa Joy), a young female cop who is determined to prove herself to the guys; and Ed Wycoff (Michael Murphy), the shrewd Chief of Police. Abby St. James (Ona Grauer) is a sharp prosecutor who begins working with the police union, and shares a mutual attraction with Frank. In his new position, Frank Leo takes on the politically-motivated department brass... and makes many powerful enemies in the process. Craig Bromell, Adam J. Shully, Laszlo Barna, Alan Di Fiore and Robert Wertheimer are executive producers for E1 Entertainment, 990 Multi Media Entertainment Company and Jonsworth Productions in association with CTV and CBS Television Studios.
MIAMI TRAUMA is about a team of expert surgeons who work at one of the premiere trauma facilities in the country, where only patients with life threatening injuries are treated. Dr. Matthew Proctor (Jeremy Northam) is new to the trauma team, after a tour of duty in a MASH unit during the Gulf war. Dr. Eva Zambrano (Lana Parrilla) is a workaholic surgeon who is more comfortable in her scrubs than she is out in the real world. Dr. Christopher Deleo, "Dr. C.," is a playboy who thrives on the high-stakes of trauma medicine and is, by his own description, a genius redneck. Dr. Serena Warren (Elisabeth Harnois) is fresh out of medical school, and head nurse Tuck Brody (Omar Gooding) keeps the doctors on track and the patients' families updated in this chaotic corner of the medical profession. Together, this team of doctors excels in the "golden hour," the 60 minutes after being critically injured, when a patient's life hangs in the balance. Jerry Bruckheimer, Jeffrey Lieber and Jonathan Littman are executive producers for Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television Distribution.
The new MIDSEASON ALTERNATIVE series:
ARRANGED MARRIAGE is a series that brings the tradition of arranged marriages, which is still practiced successfully by many cultures throughout the world, to the U.S., where it is virtually an inconceivable option for most single Americans. Three adults who are anxious to get married, but who have been unsuccessful in their own search for a mate, choose a life-altering path. They rely on their closest family and friends, those who love and know them best, to choose someone for them to marry based on shared goals, values, experiences and the commitment to make it work. The series intimately documents these three arranged marriages, starting with the first meetings of the families and the wedding day; and then follows the couple through the day-to-day joys, challenges, and emotional tumult that results from their arranged union. Emmy Award nominees Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth are executive producers for Magical Elves Inc.
UNDERCOVER BOSS is a new reality series that follows high level corporate executives as they slip anonymously into the lowest level jobs within their companies. Once undercover, they'll get their hands dirty with the rank and file, find out what their employees REALLY think of them and discover how smoothly their companies are REALLY run. In the process, these senior executives learn about themselves, the perception of their company and the spirit of their work force. Stephen Lambert is the executive producer for Studio Lambert, Ltd.
Did you fall for the charms of the series, created by Ryan Murphy (Nip/Tuck, Popular)? Or did you find it far too saccharine for your liking? Was Michele Lea's Rachel Berry a tad too similar to Election's Tracy Flick? Did you revel for the musical numbers, including Amy Winehouse's "Rehab" and Journey's "Don't Stop Believing"? Did you want to slap Jessalyn Gilsig's bitter Terri? And is she really pregnant?
And most importantly: will you watch the series when it returns this fall? Talk back here.
A few days after the CW unveiled its fall primetime schedule, the netlet has release new teaser trailers for its upcoming series Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries.
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