CliqueClack TV » American Idol

The Week in Clack – Ellen on Idol, Vampire Diaries on top

Jason Hughes — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 14:00:02 +0000

This week kicks off the real fall season with more premieres than we could possibly list here. Even more intriguing is The Jay Leno Show, kicking off Monday and every weeknight at 10pm. Will it work? I’m sure it’ll launch huge, just like Conan did over on The Tonight Show. But will it last?

If it does, will this spell the slow decline of expensive quality scripted fare on television? And what about expensive less-than-quality programming like ‘Til Death and Brothers? These shows need homes on the schedule as well … for some reason.

The big news, of course, is the crowing of Ellen DeGeneres as the new permanent Paula Abdul on American Idol. She’ll certainly be able to bring the funny, I just worry that she might offer less valuable criticism to the singers than even Abdul did.
Teens have all the power on ABC Family, earning 10 Things I Hate About You a second season renewal. So if The CW collapses, maybe ABC Family can pick up their entire lineup.
Due to her ongoing cancer treatment, Maura Tierney has been forced to pull out of Parenthood completely. I’m sure the ensemble can move on without her, but it’s sad news regardless. Here’s hoping for a speedy and full recovery for her!
Wil Wheaton is making a guest appearance on The Big Bang Theory this season. For once, I hope a guest star simply plays himself, as I think the boys meeting the real Wesley Crusher would likely be funnier than any character they could come up with for him. Luckily, Wil looks exactly the same as he did when he was … what? … like 7-years old on TNG.
President Obama addressed the nation again about his health care plan, and again FOX was the only big network that opted out of covering it. They had Glee and SYTYCD to premiere!
September 14 will see the next Oprah Winfrey Show spin-off as Dr. Oz follows Dr. Phil into his own syndicated talk show. I’m changing my name to Dr. J (not that one) and start appearing on Oprah so I can get my own show!
After adding two lovely young ladies to SNL last week, Lorne Michaels canned Michaela Watkins and Casey Wilson this week. I guess they’d hit their estrogen quota. Then came the accusation that Wilson was fired for being too fat, but since she’s not Hollywood skinny that accusation was inevitable. Even with Wilson saying it’s not true, many still believe it. I love America!
Scooby-Doo turned 40, just in time to learn his origin in the new Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins. These things make me sad and old.
It makes me happy that Britain’s Got Talent sensation Susan Boyle will be performing on America’s Got Talent’s finale this week. I think I like her charming personality better than her voice.
Jon told GMA that he hates Kate, which kind of proves he stayed with her for the show … for the fame and money. He also said she’s a monster who can unhinge her jaw and swallow children whole (they used to have 18 kids and counting).
And this weekend is the season finales of Hung and True Blood. So all those vamp lovers will have to switch over to The CW and watch The Vampire Diaries for much less sex and much more pining teenagers.
They can join the throngs that found the show’s premiere this week. The Vampire Diaries kicked off their season in strong fashion by proving that teenage girls will watch anything humanoid with fangs. The series premiere set ratings records for the netlet. With Guiding Light going away, it just might be time to bring back Dark Shadows. And if they can keep the girls of VD out of the slammer, they might just have a network-saving hit on their hands.
Speaking of ratings, Sons of Anarchy launched its second season and saw a 95% boost in ratings to 4.3 million from the first season premiere. That is … ridiculous!
Big Brother even improved this summer, enough to warrant CBS renewing it for another run this summer. Gotta start practicing my general douchebaggery.
On a more personal note, this week saw me reach 300 posts here at CliqueClack, which is exciting for the sixteen of you who pay attention to who writes what around here, and the one out of those who actually like what I write. I know you’re out there Mom! Now if I could just convince the powers that be to send me 300 chocolate frosted cupcakes, we’d be golden!

Photo Credit: WireImage.com

See Jane Clack – Ellen DeGeneres vs. Paula Abdul

Jane Boursaw — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:02:03 +0000

With the news that Ellen DeGeneres will be keeping the fourth judge’s chair warm on the upcoming season of American Idol (read Deb’s take on it here — I agree, Deb; it’s brilliant), I couldn’t help but ponder how Ellen and Paula Abdul are similar … or not … let’s break it down….

Hooker-Wear vs. Normal-Wear. They’re both cute as a button, but with Paula’s propensity for low-cut duds and giant earrings, I sometimes wondered if she was heading out to the nearest corner after the show. I’ll look forward to Ellen’s more normal attire … you know, like the rest of us out here wear.

Lovably Loopy vs. Crazy Loopy. Paula pretty much has the market cornered on loopiness, whether she’s rambling on about a contestant’s previous performance that never happened or struggling to come up with a never-before-heard adjective to describe a performance. That’s not to say that Ellen can’t be loopy. But she’s lovably loopy as compared to crazy loopy. I’m all over the lovably loopy schtick.

The Seal-Clap vs. the Ellen-Clap. I’ll look forward to seeing how Ellen claps for the contestants. I was getting tired of Paula’s seal-clapping. I half expected to return from the commercial break to see her balancing a ball on her nose. What’s worse, I started clapping that way after a while. That’s so sad.

Contestant Love vs. Fan Love. It’s clear that both of these gals love the contestants and want them to do well. Paula always encouraged them and always tried to find something good to say about even the worst performance. “Well, you LOOK fantastic tonight,” was the death knell signaling that the contestant sucked bad. Likewise, Ellen is always the first talk show host to get the cast-offs and sometimes features a big poster with all of their photos, noting who’s still left in the competition. I think Ellen fits more into the “fan love” category at this point, but that’s not a bad thing.

Career Dancing vs. Happy Dancing. Paula’s choreographed number for the contestants last season was a train wreck. I appreciate that she’s trying to revive her career in that way, but give it up, Paula. Just stop swimming, okay? Or at least swim in a different direction. On the other hand, I’d LOVE for Ellen to create a dance number for the contestants AND dance along with them. That would be a thing of beauty, for sure. Just keep swimming, Ellen, just keep swimming.

Fitting In vs. Not Fitting In. Paula seemed to get along really well with the other judges (mostly), and I wonder how Ellen will fare on this count. She’s definitely a people person, but will she “fit in” with the others? Will they let her be her lovable self? Or will she feel forced to offer in-depth critiques, when really, her strength is lightening things up? I hope she just lightens things up. Let the others talk about pitch and range.

My love for American Idol had waned in recent years, but with Ellen onboard, I’m actually excited for the next season to start. What about you? Are you happy to see Ellen in the judge’s chair? Do you think it’ll revive American Idol? Did it need reviving?

Photo Credit: Fox / NBC

American Idol + Ellen DeGeneres as the fourth judge = brilliance

Debbie McDuffee — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:52:57 +0000

Dear American Idol Powers That Be:

Thank you for your stroke of brilliance in appointing Ellen DeGeneres as your new fourth judge. You’ve just taken a huge step to make your show not only a fun singing competition, but a hilarious one. I’m not talking about Paula Abdul hilarious. We’ll be laughing with this new judge, not at her.

Picture this: instead of laughing at the trickle of drool shimmering down Paula’s chin, or the dancin’ crazy antics that she sported, even for the ballads, viewers will be chuckling along with Ellen’s jokes. Yep, she’s going to be irreverent, and she’ll be making fun of the contestants. But therein lies the beauty.

You know, I was considering not even watching American Idol in its upcoming season. I just didn’t think anything could be offered that I hadn’t already seen. I think I may be wrong. Kara’s bikini stunt during the finale was pretty awesome, I’ll admit, but there was nothing that was making me look forward to the competition, until now.

I love, love, love that you’ve added a fourth judge, and that it is Ellen DeGeneres.

Sincerely,

Debbie, a half-assed fan who just may tune in to see it all play out

(Official FOX press release follows….)

—

ELLEN DEGENERES JOINS “AMERICAN IDOL” AS NEW JUDGE

Emmy Award-winning talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has joined AMERICAN IDOL as a fourth judge. DeGeneres will sit alongside Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi and offer her own unique perspective to the contestants throughout the competition.

The ninth season of AMERICAN IDOL premieres January 2010 on FOX. DeGeneres will join the judges’ panel after the auditions, which will feature appearances by guest judges Victoria Beckham, Mary J. Blige, Kristin Chenoweth, Joe Jonas, Neil Patrick Harris, Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry and Shania Twain.

“I’m thrilled to be the new judge on AMERICAN IDOL,” said DeGeneres. ”I’ve watched since the beginning, and I’ve always been a huge fan. So getting this job is a dream come true, and think of all the money I’ll save from not having to text in my vote.”

“I could not be more excited to have Ellen join the AMERICAN IDOL family,” said creator and executive producer Simon Fuller. “Ellen has been a fan of the show for many years, and her love of music and understanding of the American public will bring a unique human touch to our judging panel. I can’t wait for this next season to begin.”

“We’re all delighted to have Ellen join our ninth season of AMERICAN IDOL,” said executive producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz. “Beyond her incredible sense of humor and love of music, she brings with her an immense warmth and compassion that is almost palpable. She is one of America’s foremost entertainers, and we cannot wait to have her join our team.”

Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment for FOX added, “We are thrilled to have Ellen DeGeneres join the AMERICAN IDOL judges’ table this season. She is truly one of America’s funniest people and a fantastic performer who understands what it’s like to stand up in front of audiences and entertain them every day. We feel that her vast entertainment experience – combined with her quick wit and passion for music – will add a fresh new energy to the show.”

A beloved television icon and entertainment pioneer, DeGeneres’ distinctive comic voice has resonated with audiences from her first stand-up comedy appearances through her work today on television, in film and in the literary world. DeGeneres has made a home for herself in the daytime arena with her hit syndicated talk show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” The show, now entering its seventh season, won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show Host four years in a row and has earned a total of 29 Daytime Emmy Awards.

DeGeneres was recently included in Forbes’ Top 5 “Most Influential Women in Media” and was voted “Best Daytime Talk-Show Host” by Parade.com readers. In addition, DeGeneres has been voted “Favorite TV Personality” by The Harris Poll’s annual favorite television star list beating out Oprah Winfrey and Jay Leno. DeGeneres was included in MSNBC’s “Power players who shape your TV habits.” DeGeneres also was honored with Television Week’s Syndication Personality of the Year and voted No. 1 in Oxygen’s “50 Funniest Women Alive” special in the company of such comedic legends as Carol Burnett and Lily Tomlin and has been included in TIME’s 100 Most Influential People.

DeGeneres had the honor of hosting the highly rated 79th Annual Academy Awards and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Performance In A Variety or Music Program. This follows her 2005 stint hosting the Primetime Emmy Awards, which marked her third time hosting the show. Her performance hosting the 2001 award show garnered her rave reviews for providing a perfect balance of wit with heartfelt emotion to the post-September 11 telecast audience. DeGeneres won an American Comedy Award for her inaugural effort hosting the show in 1994. Additionally, DeGeneres co-hosted AMERICAN IDOL’s very successful IDOL GIVES BACK special that raised money for children in extreme poverty in America and Africa.

In 2008, DeGeneres became the newest face for CoverGirl. The national print and commercial campaign for Simply Ageless Foundation premiered in December and the product quickly became No. 1 in the marketplace, outperforming expectations. DeGeneres partnered up with American Express in 2005 where she appeared in their ad campaign “My Life, My Card,” including a national commercial and a print campaign. DeGeneres later appeared in the national commercial “My Life Goal: to work with animals” which won a Primetime Emmy Award.

Prior to the launch of her talk show, DeGeneres scored simultaneous achievements on stage, film and in the literary world. She enjoyed unprecedented popular and critical response to her character, Dory, the fish with extreme short term memory, in the blockbuster animated feature film, “Finding Nemo.” At the same time, DeGeneres crossed the country on a 35-city stand-up comedy tour, entitled the “Here and Now” tour. Her stop at the famed Beacon Theater in New York was turned into an HBO special and was subsequently nominated for two Emmys. Finally, in October, Simon & Schuster published DeGeneres’ second book, “The Funny Thing Is….,” comprised of the author’s comedic short stories and essays. The book hit the New York Times’ Bestseller list upon its release. In 2005, DeGeneres was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audio version of the book. Her first book, “My Point…And I Do Have One,” published in 1995, debuted at No. 1 on the The New York Times bestseller list.

DeGeneres’ career began as an emcee at a local comedy club in her hometown of New Orleans, which led to national recognition in 1982 when her videotaped club performances won Showtime’s “Funniest Person In America” honor. When DeGeneres moved to Los Angeles she filmed her first HBO Special, “Young Comedians Reunion,” then in 1986 “Women of the Night.” That same year, DeGeneres scored a first by becoming the first female comedian to be summoned by Johnny Carson to sit down with him after her performance. In 1989, DeGeneres received a Cable Ace nomination for her “Command Performance: One Night Stand” special. She was also named “Best Female Stand-Up” at the 1991 American Comedy Awards.

DeGeneres began her acting career in television on the FOX sitcom “Open House.” She moved on to ABC’s “Laurie Hill,” prior to being offered a part on “These Friends of Mine” by ABC. After the first season, the show was renamed “Ellen.” Running from 1994 to 1998, the show garnered record ratings, with DeGeneres receiving Emmy nominations each season in the Best Actress category. In 1997, DeGeneres was the recipient of the coveted Peabody Award as well as earning an Emmy for writing the critically acclaimed “Puppy Episode” when her character came out as a gay woman to a record 46 million viewers.

Both on and off screen, DeGeneres’ humanitarian efforts take center stage. DeGeneres is passionate about bringing awareness to the people of New Orleans, her hometown, which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina and her efforts have resulted in “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” raising over $10 million to improve the lives of New Orleans residents. Overall, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” has raised over $50 million and brought attention to various causes, including global warming and animals. Additionally, DeGeneres continues to raise awareness about breast cancer, and served as spokesperson for General Mills’ breast cancer awareness initiative, Pink for the Cure, and hosted special episodes of her show to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Since she was first nationally recognized in 1982 as a comedian in New Orleans, Ellen’s many contributions to the entertainment industry have earned her numerous accolades including a Golden Apple Award as Female Discovery of the Year from the Hollywood Women’s Press Club; a Lucy Award honoring women in Television and Film, as well as an Amnesty International Award.

AMERICAN IDOL is created and executive-produced by Simon Fuller, founder of 19 Entertainment; and executive-produced by Cecile Frot-Coutaz, CEO, FremantleMedia North America, Inc. and Ken Warwick, Executive Producer, FremantleMedia North America, Inc.

Visit americanidol.com for exclusive videos, interviews and photos of the finalists, as well as special behind-the-scenes information and all of your AMERICAN IDOL news.

Photo Credit: FOX

The Week in Clack – RIP Ted Kennedy

Jason Hughes — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:45:29 +0000

Michael Jackson’s still making news, this time ensuring that his death was a tragedy. The official report out of the LA coroner’s office was that Jackson’s death was a homicide, brought on by the mixture of drugs he was being prescribed for his sleep disorder. So he very well may not have been too frail for those London concerts … but we’ll never know.

In related news, A&E is going forward with the Jackson family reality show. Exploitation or honor? You decide!
The passing of Ted Kennedy brought all kinds of specials honoring this last of the dynasty.
VH1 is in full spin mode. After the murder-suicide of one of their reality losers, Ryan Jenkins. VH1’s programming model is to air crappy reality “love” shows, then spin contestants out of those into more crappy shows and on an one. So now they have to cancel two of them (Megan Wants a Millionaire & I Love Money 3) because Ryan Jenkins was in them. It’s a huge embarassment for the network, so now they have to pretend they hardly know how any of this happened, they can’t figure out how their network became the go-to places for sleazy reality shows, and vow to change their ways. Ain’t plausible deniability great.
Dollhouse started lining up guest stars in an attempt to get more peepers on those hot bodies. Look for Summer Glau, Keith Carradine, Jamie Bamber, Alexis Denisof, Michael Hogan and more!
Good news for 30 Rock fans, as Alec Baldwin has clarified that he won’t be challenging Joe Lieberman for his Senate seat in 2012. As a show of appreciation, Lieberman will not try to take Baldwin’s job on television.
The UK has a hit on their hands with Skins, a very dark look at young life. MTV is bringing the original Skins creator stateside to do it all over again, only with fewer teen boobies because we still fear their power in the US.
The official reveal of the Dancing With the Stars pairings came out. So why does ABC do this in two lumps a week apart? Is the extra publicity that necessary?
While first season winner Richard Hatch rots in jail, CBS announced the 20 contestants competing in the 19th cycle of Survivor.
Paula Abdul found work. It’s not as high profile as American Idol, but it does feature two former winners: Kelly Clarkson and Jordin Sparks. Abdul has been tapped to host the revival of Vh1 Divas.
Back on Idol, the guest judge roulette wheel keeps spinning, landing on Neil Patrick Harris and Kristin Chenoweth.
Not to be left out, The View offered guest slots to Kate Gosselin and LaToya Jackson.
Chris Brown is trying to salvage his career, starting with an interview with Larry King. I suspect it’s over for him, though.
You’re excited about the new fall season, fast approaching? That’s big news for the weeks ahead. To keep up with when it’s all coming down, be sure and keep CliqueClack’s guide to the fall season handy.
The television landscape is a-changing. The networks failed to produce a single hit, with low ratings. At the same time, cable networks set ratings highs all over the place elevating the summer of 2009 to the most watched summer ever.
Meanwhile, the median age of television viewers is at or near 50 for the big four networks. All while advertisers still target the 18-49 group. So what are the kids doing these days? Have they really abandoned television? DVR viewership median age is considerably lower. As someone who watches nothing live, I can attest to that. So much better to schedule TV around my time. The industry needs to figure these changes out.
Oh, and A&E bought Lifetime, but I really have no thoughts about that. None at all.

Photo Credit: Kennedy.Senate.gov

The Week in Clack – Idol hiring, zombies shambling, Miley stripping?

Jason Hughes — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:00:26 +0000

Round and round and round she goes, but where Paula will land, nobody knows. Maybe she can be a zombie on AMC’s forthcoming series.

The best news ever of the week was that AMC is working on a television adaptation of The Walking Dead. The ongoing comic series is far and away the most compelling “zombie apocalypse saga” I’ve ever seen.
TNT announced that Saving Grace would wrap with a nine episode run in 2010, because they’re too cheap to produce a full fourth season for the monster hit.
Comedy Central, on the other hand, yanked Reno 911 after the fact, meaning it’s done and gone.
The Apprentice’s Omarosa is going to be a minister, and somewhere suddenly cold, Satan is chalking up another win for the home team.
In a sign that we’ve let this reality TV crap go way too far, Kim’s sister Kourtney Kardashian’s surprise pregnancy is scandalous news.
Paula Abdul might work on Dancing With the Stars, Ugly Betty, So You Think You Can Dance, something in Australia, a local Wendy’s, or any number of jobs. She’s keeping her options open.
Meanwhile, Victoria Beckham helped out on American Idol during early audition rounds, and may be lobbying to join the show permanently. And with all that money they saved by not rehiring Abdul, FOX re-upped Simon Cowell for three more years.
Apparently, the networks are burning through their ’80s and ’90s DVD collections, as now they’ve greenlit a series based on St. Elmo’s Fire. Goonies, anyone?
Speaking of ’80s and ’90s — toy-themed cartoons proved a hit at the box office again, as G.I. Joe took the top spot at the box office, meaning that I might get my Sectaurs revival sooner than I thought … maybe?
I refuse to mention a single thing that happened to anyone involved with the Gosselins. But if that saga isn’t train-wreck enough for you, FOX is giving airtime to Octomom.
HOLY CRAP! STEWIE IS GAY?!?
Oh, and now the Emmys will be live. All of it. So you’ll have to add six hours to the end of your DVR scheduled recording of it … you know, just in case.
We get a sneak preview of the future career of Hannah Montana as little Miley Cyrus danced on a stripper pole at the Teen Choice Awards.

Photo Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImage

The Week In Clack – Paula quits, Paris on Supernatural, and Anna engaged

Brett Love — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 17:00:34 +0000

With the big TCA presentations going on, it’s been a pretty big week for TV news. However, all of the talk about what we can look forward to in the fall was trumped by one short little burst on Twitter, from Paula Abdul. She chose that unconventional venue to announce that she’s leaving American Idol. What does that mean for the show? With any luck, the beginning of a steady decline that ends in cancellation. Until we are visited by those glorious days, it looks like it will be business as usual.

Kara DioGuardi will be back. According to Mike Darnell, president of alternative at FOX, “Kara’s spitfire personality and sharp musical sensibility infused American Idol with a new energy last year.” Well, one man’s “spitfire personality” is another’s “bitchy haranguing.” Paula will be replaced during the auditions by a collection of pop stars. So far, that includes Katy Perry and Victoria Beckham. I like that idea, but I hope they’re ready. Those are some awfully crazy shoes to fill. It’s unclear what will happen once the competition begins.

Lots of non-Idol news, after the jump.

So You Think You Can Dance has a winner. I won’t spoil who it is, because it was just last night. You’ll have to click through the link to see, but you should click this link anyway. Liane Bonin at Hitfix does the best SYTYCD recaps.
Paris Hilton is going to guest star on Supernatural. Crap. I know, I know, you have to trust Kripke. And he’ll probably find a way to make it not suck out loud. But still….
Joss Whedon has a story for the next Dr. Horrible adventure. There’s not much more info available, but confirmation that the sequel is being worked on is good.
Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer went and got engaged. If that’s not enough, their show, True Blood, also hit another ratings high this week.
Laurence Fishburne’s character on CSI is getting a “makeover”. Yeah, that’ll do it. Unless that makeover includes some kind of Freaky Friday body swap with William Petersen, don’t look for a return to the Grissom numbers.
Bryan Singer is making a miniseries for Syfy. It’s a six hour tale revolving around doomsday prophesies involving the Mayan calendar and the year 2012. I love crazy Mayan conspiracy, so this one has potential.
NBC had a rough week at the TCAs. They spent most of their time talking in circles and avoiding actually answering questions. It prompted one critic to begin his inquiry with, “We’re sorry we keep asking questions that apparently we’re asking to the wrong people.”
Battlestar Galactica was named Program of the Year at the TCA awards. Big Bang Theory, Mad Men, Bryan Cranston, and Jim Parsons also took home awards.
“Good news everyone.” The OG Futurama cast has come to an agreement with the studio and will be part of the new episodes set to air next year.

Finally, the picture? That’s Katie Cassidy from the Melrose Place reboot coming this fall on CW. It has nothing to do with the news really, but isn’t it better than a picture of Paula Abdul?

Photo Credit: The CW

Idol-izing Michael Jackson, the Mother of fights & Vegas-ing Vulcans – Daily Rerun Roundup

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:00:32 +0000

Starting at 8 PM, as a tribute to the recently departed Michael Jackson, FOX is rerunning the American Idol episode from earlier this year that featured his music.
Also at 8 PM, The CW is airing an episode from Gossip Girl’s second season, NBC has an episode of Law & Order, and CBS starts airing How I Met Your Mother earlier, with the episode called “The Fight,” where Ted and Barney went on about a tall tale of bravado, followed by an episode of Rules of Engagement at 8:30.
At 9 PM, Lifetime’s airing last week’s episode of Army Wives, which left Aryeh pretty confused. NBC has an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, The CW has an episode of One Tree Hill, and CBS continues the funny with Two and a Half Men and then the episode of The Big Bang Theory that brought a bunch of the guys to Las Vegas, at 9 PM.
Finally, at 10 PM, Lifetime is re-airing last night’s episode of Army Wives, and CBS has an episode from CSI: Miami’s seventh season.

Make sure you subscribe to our mailing list to get daily updates on what’s notable and new on TV, and follow us on Twitter for more of the same and other news!

Photo Credit: CBS

Reality Clack – America’s Got Talent, So You Think You Can Dance and pseudo-celebs

Jackie Schnoop — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:00:59 +0000

Of course, this past week the real reality shows took over our televisions. Three actual celebrities dying within a week will do that. You will note that none of the three — Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson — got their starts in the reality television genre.

However, Ed McMahon played his own role in reality television back when talent contests were considered … well, talent contests. Perhaps they were variety shows. Nowadays, they’re all under the reality TV umbrella. Pre-dating America’s Got Talent, American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, we had Star Search with Ed McMahon. Hi-ho.

That was the week it was

Yes, I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here is over! Amidst the pseudo-celebrities, the only real celebrity just happened to win — Lou Diamond Phillips. Now, he hasn’t done much lately, I’ll admit. But at least he had some well-received movie roles in the past. Oh, we had the Lesser and Greater Baldwins, too. The show was like watching a train wreck or ogling a car accident. You don’t want to watch. You feel like slime for looking. But morbid curiosity keeps calling you into the world of madness.

It’s no wonder they didn’t have real celebrities on the show. Those “trials” were both disgusting and, it seems to me, very dangerous. Real rat bites? Crocodiles, albeit small ones? Tarantulas and snakes, oh my. I can only wonder if the next installment of the series will have pseudo-celebs — oh, maybe MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice, CarrotTop and that ilk — stuck in a rundown tenement in Camden, New Jersey. I can see it now …

MC Hammer: “Don’t mug me! I can dance! I have funny pants!”

At least we had the start of America’s Got Talent this past week. While in its audition phase, there are many acts which really needn’t be on national television. But there are some gems, as well. Jerry Springer is no longer the host, although he wasn’t so Springer Show-esque when he hosted the show anyway. In his place is Nick Cannon, who can be very entertaining. Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff are back at the judges podium. Let’s see some talent.

The competition is heating up on So You Think You Can Dance as we’re down to eight couples this week. Oddly enough, I think the performances on the first show were better than the quality we saw the following two weeks. I doubt my own favorite dancer on the show, Phillip Chbeeb, will make it through to the end. He’ll probably have fan votes and be able to “dance for his life” successfully with his own style. But I see that he’s having problems with picking up other styles. But, dang … I love to watch him dance.

Not the best of weeks, but soon we’ll have Big Brother 11. Yes!

Photo Credit: NBC

Quotation Marks – This week we bring the funny

Ivey West — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:00:40 +0000

Here is the latest edition of the week in quotes. Fortunately for us all, we had some new TV this week to pull from. I also, for better or for worse, went a little crazy with the Virgin Diaries (Damn yous, wikiquote.org). Most of the quotes I pulled from the old episodes this week were quirky and funny, so I hope you enjoy!

Burn Notice

“Loving Michael is like trench warfare.” – Maddie

“Human instincts can jeopardize a mission. Sometimes its better to let a guy bleed a while.” – Mike’s narration

Harper’s Island

“Shane Pierce! What do you think you’re doing?” – Maggie, as Shane pulls his knife to the wood of the bar at the hotel
“I’m carving my name … What? Do you really think anyone is ever going to stay here again?” – Shane

Weeds

“Just because you’ve been a slutty, irresponsible, slutty slut and had unprotected sex with a Mexican gangster doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.” – Andy to Nancy

Nurse Jackie

“Shut up. I don’t like chatty. I don’t do chatty. I like quiet.” - Nurse Jackie

And now, selections from the Virgin Diaries

Supernatural

“If this is my last day on earth, I do not want it to be socially awkward.” – Dean to Sam

Burn Notice (well, again)

“When you read this guy’s profile you’re gonna kiss me.” – Sam
“I am not gonna kiss you, Sam.” – Mike
“Look, I’m not saying I’m gonna like it. I’m just saying you’re gonna kiss me.” - Sam

Firefly

“Its a real burden being right so often.” – Mal

“Oh, yeah! I definitely have to say it was her legs. You can put that down! Her legs, and right where her legs meet her back. That — actually that whole area. That and — and above it.” – Wash being interrogated about Zoe

Veronica Mars (one of the most quotable shows of all time)

“Next time remember: Lift drunk, combative bail jumpers with your legs, not with your back.” – Veronica

“Have you heard from your sister?” – Aaron
“She sent a telegram: Heartbroken. Stop. Can’t make it back from Sydney. Stop. Underwater shoot starts tomorrow. Stop. Entire crew said prayer for mom. Stop. Love you. Stop” – Logan
“Logan …” – Aaron
“Stop?” – Logan

“If you’re looking for my trophy, it’s back by auto shop.” – Weevil
“Lube job? Or, can you medal in stealing hub caps?” – Veronica
” Is this 1970? Rims, baby.” – Weevil
“So you got a trophy for a rim job?” – Veronica

“Can you do me a weird favor without asking any questions?” -Veronica
“Isn’t that the bedrock upon which our friendship was founded?” – Wallace

“Don’t forget: You’re a high school girl. Do some high school girl things now and then.” – Keith
“Relax, Dad. I’m cutting pictures of Ashton out of Teen People as we speak.” – Veronica

Six Feet Under

“Why to people have to die?” – Tracy
“… To make life important.” – Nate

Moonlight

“So, do you bite people’s necks and suck the blood out?” – Beth
“Actually, I get most of my blood from the blood bank.” – Mick
“Oh. The Red Cross does not mention that in their literature.” – Beth

Just for kicks, this weeks a couple of quotes from the ether:

“Yahoo and YouTube are using their mega-traffic portals to alert readers about the digital transition. Which is helpful … for the three people who have broadband access and are surfing YouTube yet watch TV using a wire hanger hooked into a 1983 Zenith. ” – James Hibberd of thrfeed.com

“You know who you should blame?… Find your friends that watched American Idol this season, instead of Reaper, and punch them in the face. And be like, Dude, it’s your fault.” – Jenny Wade, the quote that spurned Deb’s Behind the Scenes post

“I guess since @Electric44 let the cat out of the bag, I can reveal … OMG I’M WORKING ON LEVERAGE NEXT WEEK!!!!” – Wil Wheaton, one of CliqueClack’s favorite people, announcing he was working on one of our favorite shows.

Photo Credit: USA

See Jane Clack – So You Think You Can Dance vs. American Idol

Jane Boursaw — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:00:37 +0000

We — as in, my household of two adults and two kids — love watching American Idol during the winter months. It comes on in January, just about the time we’re going stir-crazy here in the North Woods, and carries us into the spring months. I know Idol has gotten a bad rap lately, but it keeps us from killing each other during those long, cold, cabin-fever nights.

And just about the time Idol ends, we have another talent show to keep us interested into the summer: So You Think You Can Dance. I wouldn’t say it’s the life-and-death situation of American Idol, but it’s definitely a fun diversion from the hectic rush of our lives. And it’s hard not to compare the two shows, which is what I’m going to do right now.

The Judges. The first thing that stands out is the judges. Both shows have a judges’ panel that includes a British guy and a loopy female. If you count Lil’ C among the cast of rotating third judges in SYTYCD, he could be the counterpart to Randy Jackson. Lil’ C doesn’t say “Dawg,” but he does say “That’s buck.” I’m not really sure what that means yet. Mary Murphy’s laugh is only slightly more annoying than Paula Abdul’s seal-clap, and Nigel Lythgoe seems a bit more human than Simon Cowell, although Nigel’s Beach Boys hairdo is a head-scratcher.

The Contestants. There’s a similar number of weepy contestants on both shows, but more gay guys come right out and say it on SYTYCD. There’s no mystery a la Adam Lambert (I mean, come on, he’s gay, not that there’s anything wrong with that!). There does seem to be more goofiness during the Idol auditions, though. Wow, most of those SYTYCD contestants are intense and in it to win it. Then again, more than one Idol hopeful has said, “If I don’t make it, this is all I’ve got,” which is sad.

The Pay-Off. Last year’s SYTYCD winner danced off with $250K and a featured role in Adam Shankman’s upcoming film, Step Up 3D. I’m not sure about the payoff this year — touring with Celine Dion maybe? At any rate, Idol’s multi-album recording contract seems like a better deal to me.

The Hosts. Cat Deeley seems more laid back, more behind-the-scenes than Idol’s Ryan Seacrest, who’s everywhere with everyone. They’re both fun to watch during the auditions and performances, though. They both seem to genuinely care about the contestants.

So which is your favorite? American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance? Or do you just wish they’d both go away?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Photo Credit: Fox

Reality Clack – So You Think You Can Dance, The Bachelorette, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, and seasonal slumping

Jackie Schnoop — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:00:58 +0000

It’s that time of the year. The May sweeps have ended and television, both scripted and reality, has been thrown into Limbo Land. Sure, cable has some decent new scripted episodes, but what about us reality buffs? I mean … how long can we listen to speculation on Adam Lambert’s sexuality preferences? Do we really care about past tense voting scandals on American Idol?

No! This is the day of instant gratification! We need fresh reality shows, and there’s just not a heck of a lot going on. Watching the TV Guide network’s show about where all the Survivor millionaires are now entertains me, for an hour at least. Then it’s done. Now I remember that I don’t care what most of them are doing. They were on the show; I loved them or hated them; now they’re gone. I want fresh meat.

That was the week it was

Well, Bachelorette fans might be happy. There’s a new season of that show in the dearth of reality entertainment right now. But, of course, I’m not a fan of the romance shows. I think they’re like being a sleaze at a bar looking for love in all the wrong places while being made for a fool on national television. That could be me, I guess. The show airs Mondays at 8 PM ET/PT on ABC. It’s not my cuppa tea, but it may be yours. And, at least it’s new.

One show I do watch and enjoy has just started up again — So You Think You Can Dance. But the problem with this one is similar to watching the first few weeks of American Idol. It’s the audition and early contestant stage of the show. Some of the auditions are horrific, some look outright painful. Many can’t dance any better than I can pass myself off as a leggy supermodel. Then there are the good auditions. But we might not see some of them again or they might fall apart in Las Vegas.

I can’t get too attached to this show until they get the group down to a manageable number of contestants. I can’t invest my emotions until I can remember at least the first names of some of the dancers. But, with the auditions, I can enjoy some of the better street type performers. B-boys and poppers are amazing. And, it’s cheaper to watch them on TV than to put a buck in the hat at Washington Square Park to see some good street talent.

Up and coming

Next Sunday, June 7, my calendar is already marked. It’s the return of Gene Simmons Family Jewels on A&E. Now, I’m actually more of the generation of Gene, but I have a wicked cougar crush on Nick Simmons. This show is everything The Osbournes wasn’t. While I’m sure Gene and I would clash, at least I can understand him when he talks. Instead of presenting a decadent washed-up hippie rocker dysfunctional family, the Simmons (albeit highly staged) come across as witty, clever and lots of fun.

The kids both have their heads on straight which says a good deal about how they were raised. Sure, they do typical teenage wacky hijinks (I always wanted to say that), but they don’t seem to have deep psychological scars or a tendency to frequent rehabs. Oh … and did I mention my cougar crush on Nick?

Photo Credit: A&E

Reality Clack – American Idol, Survivor, So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing With the Stars

Jackie Schnoop — Mon, 25 May 2009 18:00:52 +0000

Well, there were probably a lot of non-fans of the reality television genre breathing huge sighs of relief this past week as yet another season of American Idol wrapped up. Survivor Tocantins also ended last Sunday night, but on a very different note. Both shows went out in gala style. However, one was a shocker and the other was pretty much a given.

I personally don’t care so much who won what on the reality shows I watch. Sure, there are folks like delusional Ben “Coach” Wade whom I want off my TV set the moment I see them. But my criteria for a good season always remains … was I entertained? Regarding Survivor and American Idol, yes. Yes, I was very entertained.

That was the week it was

I’ll touch on the Survivor finale first just to get the old news out of the way. As usual, we had the three-hour night of the show — two hours of gameplay, then the live reunion show. I always wish that The Amazing Race would put on something similar to the reunion show during their finale. Phil Keoghan could definitely do a Jeff Probst kind of interviewing session with the cast. No, I don’t think Julie Chen could handle that sort of show with Big Brother as she often seems oblivious to what’s been going on. But, just as Jeff is perfect to grill the castaways, so could Phil.

The fact that JT won the season and that it was unanimous when he was paired up in the final two with Stephen came as no surprise to me. I think JT would have won over anyone. Perhaps if Taj had been in the final two with him, she would have gotten some votes. Surely, he would have won anyway. I’m satisfied with the winner — he excelled in many areas.

Could he have done it all without Stephen and Taj? I don’t think so. I think, had they not been at his side in the alliance, he would have been targeted. I enjoyed watching all three of them take over the game. I only wish that Stephen and JT had taken Taj to the final three instead of Erinn. That was just wrong.

The Survivor finale was nothing compared to the season finale of American Idol this year. Before I even mention the winner, I have to say that the finale show itself was one of the most entertaining shows I’ve seen in ages. Usually I’m not so keen on the AI finale, but I have to give ‘em kudos for the array of artists involved. I mean … we’re talking Steve Martin on banjo, Cyndi Lauper, Jason Mraz, Carlos Santana, KISS, The Black-Eyed Peas, on and on … and on. What a spectacular event!

As for the season itself, I think most of the Idol-wannabes were of a higher caliber than in previous seasons. There were no Sanjayas in the final bunch. Sure, Megan Joy Corkrey could be a bit iffy at times. But, overall, there was a huge amount of young talent this year.

The controversy over why Kris won runs the gamut from the anti-gay vote to the pro-Christian vote to the Danny Gokey exodus vote to the judges pushing an Adam vote and beyond. I noticed that the teenybopper girls went crazy for Kris, so that’s sure to be a factor, too. It really doesn’t matter. The show opened doors for both Kris and Adam. Now all they have to do is pursue their dreams in music — they both have built-in fan bases to support them. May they live long and prosper … or something like that. It was a good season for the show. Let’s see ‘em top it next year! (It’s so much better than a Reuben Studdard stand there and sweat although possessing a decent voice win!)

On the Dancing With the Stars finale, it was Shawn Johnson and Mark Ballas for the win. I should note that at 17-years-old, Shawn is the youngest competitor ever on the show. Her Olympic gymnast background definitely gave her the grace and discipline for DWTS. Congratulations! I think of her and newly 17-year-old American Idol contestant Allison Iraheta, then think back to what I was doing at that age. Um, well. I was in college then, but doing a lot of things I shouldn’t have been doing!

This past week started the new season of So You Think You Can Dance. While I’ve never been a big fan of Dancing With the Stars, I’m practically rabid over SYTYCD. Don’t ask me why. And, no. I can’t dance. I can’t sing either. I’m glad these shows weren’t around when I was the age for contestants. Back then I thought I could dance and sing. Thankfully I never embarrassed myself on national (international these days) television. Now, if there was a show called So You Think You Can Hole Up in Your Apartment Alone for a Month and Read Books … that I could win. Once we get through the audition phase and into the real show of SYTYCD, I’ll be entertained once again. Until then, I might read some books.

Photo Credit: FOX

Ratings Clack – 2008-2009 goes out with a bang

Brett Love — Mon, 25 May 2009 17:01:53 +0000

Just like that, the 2008-2009 season is done. We are now firmly in the grips of the summer television season. That means there will be a months long wait (10 if you’re a Chuck fan!) for new episodes. On the bright side, you’ll have plenty of time to watch the Women’s College World Series (Danielle Lawrie is awesome!) or the French Open (I’ve got Nadal and Safina). Or maybe you’ll join me in reading World War Z (Zombies!). Before you get started on that fancy new summer schedule, we have one last week of numbers to take a look at.

FOX - It was the biggie, so let’s begin with Idol. There was a fair bit of chatter about how the numbers were down for the Idol finale, but let’s be realistic. The final performance show (23.82m/8.6), and the big finale announcement (28.84m/10), were so far ahead of everything else on TV that it doesn’t even matter. Consider that only two other shows, 2 ½ Men and Dancing With The Stars, were even able to crack 5 in the demo. Even in a ‘down’ year, Idol is far and away the number one show on television.

Elsewhere, the Sunday animation block got the week off to a slow start. Perhaps it was the presence of the Survivor and Housewives finales. Simpsons (5.85m/2.9), King Of The Hill (5.22m/2.6), Family Guy (7.35m/3.7), and American Dad (5.64m/2.8) were all down a bit. That theme continued on Monday. 24 (9.65m/3.1) missed having Dr. House at 8. Tuesday did bring some good news, in addition to Idol. Glee (9.62m/3.9) premiered to critical raves and managed to post what I would call very Fringe-like numbers. The kids from So You Think You Can Dance (8.47m/3.4) kicked off the FOX summer on Thursday, winning the night in the demo. And Friday, Don’t Forget The Lyrics (3.4m/1) made its return to Friday, with very Dollhouse looking numbers.

ABC - As with FOX, ABC’s final week was carried by their reality powerhouse. Dancing With The Stars remains a legitimate hit, posting excellent numbers for Monday’s performance show (19.17m/4.4), and the big Tuesday finale (20.31m/5.2). Tom and Samantha passed the Monday keys off to The Bachelorette (8.69m/3) which was below where The Bachelor left off. However, as we saw with that one, casting is everything.

Elsewhere, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (9.27m/3.1) and Desperate Housewives (13.96m/4.7) wrapped things up on Sunday. Those numbers are down year to year, and it is the lowest rated Housewives finale ever, but still solid. The only other programming of note was the two hour finale of Ugly Betty (6.27m/1.9).

CBS – Not to be outdone, CBS had a big reality finale of their own as Survivor wrapped up with the final episode (12.94m/4.2) and the reunion show (11.58m/4.1) on Sunday. The week continued with Rules of Engagement illustrating just what the power of a good lead-in will do: Rules Of Engagement (7.49m/2.7), How I Met Your Mother (8.73m/3.7), 2 ½ Men (16.18m/5.3), Rules Of Engagement (12.87m/4.4). Having watched both episodes, I can assure you, the second one wasn’t 5 million viewers better. CSI: Miami (14.19m/3.8) finished Monday with their finale. That demo number is an interesting one, as it is .4 better than the original CSI managed with its finale. Could it be that Horatio is now the top dog in the CSI universe?

Good news continued Tuesday as NCIS (16.51m/3.4) continues to hold up amazingly well against Idol. Likewise, The Mentalist (16.82m/3.7) was just fine up against DWTS. Without A Trace (11.21m/2.5) wasn’t quite as successful, and can now be added to the list of shows that entered Tuesday @ 10 and never made it back out. The short week wrapped up on Wednesday with uneventful finales from Old Christine (5.55m/1.6) and Gary Unmarried (5.52m/1.7), and another solid cliffhanger from Criminal Minds (13.99m/3.5).

NBC - It was what I would call a bizarro reversal week for the peacock. Next season there will be no scripted programming in the 10PM slot, as the network is going all Jay, all the time. Last week, the only new scripted programming was at 10PM. It wasn’t a good week. The highlight was Law & Order:SVU (6.92m/2.5) on Tuesday. Unfortunately, that highlight was the lowest rated SVU ever. The original L&O (6.66m/2) wasn’t any better on Wednesday. Medium (6.56m/1.9) made its final NBC appearance on Monday. Look for that viewer number to jump by a good two million when the show moves to Friday on CBS. Finally, Southland (6.45m/1.9) finished its inaugural season. Don’t look for those numbers to improve on the NBC Friday.

CW - It was a short week, with only four hours of new programming. Gossip Girl (2.33m/1.1) went out with a steady number. Their partner in crime, One Tree Hill (2.68m/1.3), saw a small bump, most likely aided by the announced casting changes. Tuesday, Reaper (1.71m/.7) suffered another small drop. And 90210 (2m/1.1) finished off the week.

Next week, everything changes. And by that I mean the weekly post. With so little new network programming, we’ll begin the shift to Ratings Clack Lite for the summer. We’ll still follow the new things on the networks, and start mixing in some cable results as things like Burn Notice, Psych, and Eureka get new seasons under way.

Photo Credit: ABC

American Idol – 100,000,000 votes just weren’t enough

Michael Noble — Thu, 21 May 2009 09:18:19 +0000

Kris Allen: American Idol.

Get used to it, folks. It’s a fact. Thing is, we’ll probably be used to it before Kris is. “I don’t even know what to feel right now. This is crazy,” Kris mumbled to Ryan Seacrest as he leaned against the host of the show for support at the end of the finale.

And you have to hand it to Adam Lambert. He was gentlemanly, he was supportive, he was accommodating. But then, he has been throughout the entire season, hasn’t he? That’s always been Adam’s greatest asset. With almost 100,000,000 votes cast (that’s almost one hundred million votes, folks), it still wasn’t enough to garner what Adam needed to win the whole enchilada. But that’s all right. Don’t worry – Adam will be just fine. I mean, everyone wants to work with him, y’know? And after the Glambert and KISS-capades in the midst of the show, who wouldn’t want to?

Look … I have nothing against the guy. He just wasn’t my cup of tea, s’all. And anything further I say about him is just going to get turned against me, feeding into the “hater” reputation I’ve somehow developed, anywho. (Nothing could be farther from the truth.) So let’s just let bygones be bygones, shall we? Hey … least the dude didn’t have to yelp Kara’s “No Boundaries” again, knowwhuttamean? See? There’s justice in his loss after all.

And yes, there was a 2-hour show attached to this Idol finale. Among some of the “finale fun”? Well …

Of the duets and gang performances: Lil Rounds and Queen Latifah mixed it up like oil and water. Kris Allen and Keith Urban sang a rendition of “Kiss A Girl” that about had me sawing zees half-way through the performance.

Let’s see … I still don’t understand what anyone sees in the Black Eyed Peas – especially after the performance of their latest single. Danny “The Gokester” Gokey and Lionel Ritchie? Bravo. Brahv – freakin’ – Oh. Smashing stuff, Gokester. (There was even a cool little sly smile on Danny’s face at one point during their duet, a “What the hell am I doing on stage with Lionel Ritchie?” kinda look. Spiffy.) Allison “Red” Iraheta and Cyndi Lauper – a more than decent duet. (Though, Cyndi, seriously: not the most elegant instrument to be performing with all spread-eagle like that, y’know?) And, of course, Adam and KISS. The perfect pairing. The. Perfect. Pairing.

Best for me was the Steve Martin / Michael Sarver / Megan Joy folk tune “Pretty Flowers.” You bet I’m out the door and headed to my local Best Buy to pick up Steve’s latest disc. (Yes, I’m dead serious about that.)

Best of the night for the attending celebrities, however, had to be Rod Stewart. His “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” was outstanding. Given: the dude’s sung it twenty thousand times and he kept terrific tempo … but was Rod-o drunk? And, if so, just how drunk was he? He tripped coming down the stairs … he stumbled on one of the floor lights on stage … he was a dancin’ fool during his performance. He was a clappin’ fool. He was a plaid jacket wearin’ fool. He was a “Let’s do a jig!” fool. “Thank you kindly” were his final words at the end. This was classic stuff. Sorry if you missed it.

And last of the fun was our own Kara DioGuardi, showing off her snaredrum-taut stomach. This had to be the only time I’ve ever liked her the entire season. And not for the fact she stripped. But for the fact that she had the guts to do so.

Hhhmmmmmmmm. Kris Allen – American Idol. Imagine that. Guess I was right after all; Adam Lambert didn’t win….

Photo Credit: FOX

American Idol: Giving good show

Michael Noble — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:00:32 +0000

Glambert vs. Kute Kris. The Showdown. The second to last American Idol episode everyone would be watching … waiting to hear what they would sing … how they would interpret the songs … who would get the kudos.

Out of the gate came a shakey Adam, very vampiric and oh, so black and gloomy. “All around me are familiar faces … worn out spaces … worn out places …” swooned Adam in his opening song, a redux of his earlier “Mad World.” “I went to school and I was very nervous … no one knew me, no one knew me …” We all know you, Adam. You’re ingrained into our memories. And trust us: it’s a mad world indeed.

Maybe Kris followed up with “Ain’t No Sunshine” because Adam came out all dark and dreary to begin with. But, by the second verse, there went Kris, putting his stamp on a timeless standard and winning the Round #1.

For Round #2, is there any doubt that “Change Is Gonna Come?” Oh, yeah. It’s like the tide is coming in, Adam. It’s a perfect storm. But don’t worry: no matter how bluesy the backing guitar (as it was last eve), it’s never going to drown out your frantic, signature screech. That’s yours … all yours.

But, frantic as Adam’s second round was, it out shown Kris’s “What’s Goin’ On” in several ways. Ultimately, however, Kris’s song was what it was. It didn’t compliment Adam’s half of the round in the least; it wasn’t meant to. What it was meant to do was leave a mark, and it left a superb one, one that was all together different than Adam’s. And the judges? They were talkin’ out their backsides. I gave Round #2 to Kris. By a hair.

Lastly, “No Boundaries” — the co-written by our own Kara DioGuardi. (Side Note: What a goofy bridge that song had.) Yet, Adam restrained himself in the singing of it. Wonders … they never cease.

And then some of the “Huh?” moments kicked in. From Kara: “It is amazing when someone with your level of talent sings a song that we’ve written.” What?!? I could sing that song and I’d do it in scads of terribleness … but that wouldn’t be any less amazing than “a talent” signing it, would it Kara? So, the question is: What in the world are you talking about?

But wait … there’s more. This one from Paula Abdul: “Adam … I … we’re … adjectives can’t express what you brought to this show …” Now Pauler … what are you going on about? If not adjectives (and, more correctly, adverbs), what do you intend to use to express what Adam brought to the show? Donuts? That Pauler – she never disappoints, does she?

I had to give that final round to Kris. Even with the couple of pitch glitches he committed, Kris did a superior job in comparison to Adam’s performance of “No Boundaries” … and despite the judges’ seeming dismissal of him before the finale airs. What’s up with that, Randy? Kara? Pauler? Simon? Never before on a season of American Idol have I seen the judges give the cold shoulder to a contestant at the end of a finale as they did to Kris. That was an eyebrow raiser.

And so it comes to this. Ultimately, the proof won’t be in the pudding, it’ll be in the voting. Good thing the majority of those votes are going to Kris. Thanks for giving us a good show, boys. See you both tonight …..

Photo Credit: Fox

Justin Guarini and I chat about the American Idol finale

Kona Gallagher — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:01:05 +0000

Cut the crap. You know you’ve got a favorite in the American Idol finale. You may pretend it’s beneath you, but deep down inside, you either think Adam Lambert is the best sparkly vampire ever to warble a Johnny Cash tune, or you think Kris Allen is Jason Mraz’s dreamier, more Southern soul brother. Hell, even my dad is eagerly calling me on Wednesdays to go over the previous night’s performances, and the only other TV show I know for a fact he watches is Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, (or Move That Bus, as he thinks it’s called) because it makes him cry.

Anyway, I’ve gotten sucked into Idol this season, and this happened to coincide with an opportunity to chat with Idol’s first season runner-up, Justin Guarini. Justin has been busy hosting not one, but two American Idol shows on The TV Guide Channel and an Idol video blog on Fancast.com, so he’s nearly as involved in this season as he was in the original one seven years ago. In addition, he’s in the studio working on his third album and is planning on debuting a new web series (but don’t call it a variety show).

I caught up with him and we chatted about who’s going to get Danny’s votes and whether it’s Kris or Adam who is more popular with the training-bra crowd.

After what seems like forever, we’re actually down to the final two on American Idol. Adam and Kris are going to be battling it out this week. Do you think America made the right choice?

I do think America made the right choice. It’s going to be a really nice contrast between the two of them. You have Adam who is just larger than life, with an amazing voice, and then you have Kris, who is a real talented guy and an amazing musician with an amazing voice, but they’re two very different styles. It’s going to make for one hell of a finale.

I agree; I thought that they were definitely two of the best in the competition. Kris really snuck up on me though; it took me a few weeks to realize how good he really is.

Yeah, Kris snuck up on everyone. Kris has been the dark horse of the season. I think originally everyone thought it was Allison, and then Kris really truly, considering that he did not get very much face time in the initial rounds, came out of nowhere. Nobody expected he would be in the top two. Maybe the top five, but no one expected the top two. He really earned his way into it. What really amazes me and speaks to his talent and how likable he is is that he didn’t get the face time, and he’s married and the girls still voted for him! All things seemed to be against Kris getting to this place, but he overcame it and got himself a ticket to the finale.

You know what I thought was so funny about his fans was on the show last week when they showed them going back to their hometowns. Did you notice how Kris seemed to be huge with the eight and under set?

Yeah, that’s a very interesting point. I think one of the things that propelled Kris to the finale is that he is very popular with that younger, texting voting block. The eight to twenty two year-old voting block, which is a huge Idol faction.

I was surprised about that. I had always thought that Danny and especially Adam skewed more toward the teenagers, while Kris had more of the college-aged and above fans.

Yeah, I think it’s the exact opposite and that Adam and Danny both skew older, and there were split votes there. Kris takes a bit of the older crowd, but he has a huge, youthful fanbase. My question is, who’s going to get Danny’s votes in the finale?

If what you said is correct and the people who liked both Adam and Danny go for Adam in the finale, then Kris could definitely have a problem.

Well you’ve got those people who are going to be like, “I’m going to vote for Kris because Adam beat out Danny,” and then you have those other people who voted for Danny who are like, “Ooh, I love Adam too. I’m going to vote for him,” and then you have the younger crowd who’s gonna be split right down the middle. There are so many different factions of Danny votes, and there are so many ways you can slice up the pie, that it’s going to be very close. I think it will be the closest, if not the second closest finale we’ve seen, with the closest of course, being Clay and Reuben.

I find that really interesting, because Adam, from the very beginning, or at least since we’ve been in the Top Twelve, has just been the presumptive winner. He has just been barreling forward without hesitation, and Kris has really just snuck in there. I think a week ago, Adam winning was all but decided, but I think you’re right. I think now it’s going to be a lot closer.

It’s going to be very, very close. So we’ll just see how it all turns out. [...] I think they both deserve that crown, and like the rest of America, I’ll be anxiously watching to see who gets it.

Photo Credit: Albert L. Ortega / PR Photos

Ratings Clack – Finale bonanza

Brett Love — Mon, 18 May 2009 14:00:34 +0000

The 2008-2009 television season is quickly coming to a close. Last week saw some 30 season/series finales hitting our screens. The resulting numbers were all over the place. Some shows took advantage of the situation, pulling out all the stops and hitting numbers they hadn’t seen in some time. Others held steady. And a few signed in with troubling drops.

I’ve mentioned before that these final numbers could hold sway as the networks prepare to release the fall schedules this week. That does still apply, although, after all the shenanigans over the weekend, with Dollhouse and Better Off Ted being renewed, just how much sway becomes a little more cloudy.

ABC - Kind of a good news/medium news week for the network. Things started off a bit rocky on Sunday. Desperate Housewives (12.29m/4.1) was off a bit, but that is still the highest rated show on Sunday night, so it’s not a big worry. That led to the finale of Brothers & Sisters (8.74m/3), which remains a solid solution for Sundays at 10. There was a similar drop with the Dancing With The Stars (18.55m/4.2) performance show on Monday. But I think much of that can be chalked up to the first half hour being nothing but a rehash of the season. Tom and the gang were followed by the season finale of Castle (9.96m/2.4) which made the best out of getting the cushy time slot. It was enough to garner a second season for the show.

Tuesday brought more good numbers for the DWTS Results (14.01m/3.1) and some bad ones for the finale of Cupid (5.05m/1.5), which was better news for Castle than anyone else. The writers at Lost (9.43m/4.4) delivered one of those ‘pull out all the stops’ finales on Wednesday. We’ll save the debate about whether it was a good finale for Bob’s post. For our purposes here, while it’s pretty clear the show is never going to return to the 20 million viewer level, the 4.4 demo score means it’s still a legitimate hit show. The news was even better on Thursday. Grey’s Anatomy (16.53m/5.9) also went big with the finale, and it paid with numbers the show hasn’t seen in a long time.

CBS - Going a bit out of order, CSI (14.81m/3.4) was the polar opposite of Grey’s. Forget pulling out all the stops, it was as if there was a directive assuring that all the stops would be pushed as far in as they would go. Really, that episode could have been dropped in anywhere in the season, as if they didn’t even care that it was the finale. Worse yet, those are the worst numbers of the season. For the finale. That’s a problem.

Elsewhere, the news was better. Sunday was solid, as The Amazing Race (10.49m/3.1), Cold Case (11.84m/2.6), and The Unit (9.64m/2.4) called it a season. Early reports say that those numbers were enough to get another season for Cold Case. Monday, The Big Bang Theory (9.76m/3.7) finale led into How I Met Your Mother (8.78m/3.6), 2 ½ Men (13.11m/4.5), Rules Of Engagement (10.14m/3.6), and CSI: Miami (13.59m/3.9). Those numbers are slightly down for Men and Engagement, and it marks a rare demo win for Miami over big brother CSI. Crime continued to pay on Tuesday, with NCIS (16.19m/3.3), The Mentalist (16.21m/3.3), and Without A Trace 13.4m/2.8). Finally, the CBS Friday wrapped up the season with Ghost Whisperer (8.93m/2), Flashpoint (8.42m/1.8), and Numb3rs (9.6m/2.1).

NBC – It was an up and down week for the network. Celebrity Apprentice (8.81m/3.1) and The Biggest Loser (11.85m/4.7) held up their ends on Sunday and Tuesday, both bringing 3 hour finales. That Biggest Loser number is especially impressive, facing Idol, NCIS, The Mentalist, DWTS Results, and Fringe. On the other hand, Monday and Wednesday remain troubled. Deal Or No Deal (4.23m/1.1) really needs to end. It’s not offering any help to Medium (7.3m/2.3), which remains solid, if not impressive. Law and Order Wednesday isn’t doing much for the numbers either. The reruns are being ignored, and the original Law & Order (7.89m/2.2) was a distant third for the night.

The real worries came on Thursday. It is the networks most successful scripted night. And, sadly we do have to qualify that with ’scripted’ because The Biggest Loser kicks the hell out of the prized comedies. In a night of comedy finales, My Name Is Earl (4.84m/2) and Parks & Recreation (4.29m/2) were both off the pace. That’s bad, but not exactly surprising. What is surprising, the numbers for The Office (6.77m/3.5). That’s the lowest rating the show has seen in two years, for a finale, with a big Jim & Pam reveal. That, of course, didn’t do any favors for 30 Rock (5.69m/2.8) which was also below par. To cap it all off, the shine is most definitely off of Southland (4.65m/1.6). The network might have been a little hasty pulling the trigger on renewing that one.

FOX - After a bumpy start on Sunday that saw The Simpsons (5.19m/2.5), Family Guy (6.35m/3.2), and American Dad (4.88m/2.4) all down week to week, things picked up Monday. House (12.74m/4.7) is still a hit, besting DWTS and Men for the highest demo of the night. 24 (9.79m/3.2) followed, with usual results. American Idol, of course, won everything on Tuesday (22.71m/8) and Wednesday (24.67m/8.7), but the more interesting story is probably the shows it is paired with.

The Fringe (9.28m/3.9) finale remained reasonably steady, wrapping up what has been a very successful first season. The interesting bit is that reported schedules for the fall have Fringe stepping out on its own, without the protection of House and Idol. Has the show developed an audience all its own? It will be fascinating to find out. Lie To Me (8.46m/2.6) also remained steady, compared to its recent 8 o’clock numbers. It does remain the most puzzling scheduling question of the season though. Why Idol at 9? The numbers would be virtually identical at 8, and Lie To Me would be averaging a good two million more viewers and better than a point more in the demo.

Thursday, Bones (8.88m/2.6) remains somewhat down on Thursdays, when compared to itself on another night. But the move has been a success, giving FOX a presence on the night that it hasn’t had in years. That alone made the renewal a no-brainer. Hell’s Kitchen (7.37m/3.2) continues to surprise, and very nearly edged CSI in the demo. Finally, Friday brought the series finale of the already canceled Prison Break (3.33m/1.2). Yes, that did top the finale of Dollhouse, making that whole renewal just that much more strange.

CW - It was business as usual down at the CW this week. Gossip Girl (2.3m/1.2), and One Tree Hill (2.3m/1.1) remain at their mid-season levels. Likewise, Reaper (1.97m/.9) seems to have settled in at a number. 90210 (2.08m/1.2) did show some small gains. On Wednesday, the finale for Next Top Model (4.31m/1.9) set the show apart as easily the highest rated program on the network, while again asking the question, “Why do they only show 90210 repeats after their highest rated show?” Finales for Smallville (3.13m/1.4) and Supernatural (2.89m/1.3) solidified Thursday as the strongest scripted night for the network. And finally, an odd one hour dramedy episode served as the finale for The Game (1.86m/.9). It finished things off so it will work as a series ender, but there are rumors that the show’s value in syndication could bring an ATJesque renewal.

Coming up this week … everything else wraps up. Sunday sees a couple of the big hitters call it a season when Desperate Housewives and Survivor call it quits. Monday brings finales for Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, How I Met Your Mother, 2 ½ Men, and CSI: Miami. We’ll aslo get the final performance show from Dancing With The Stars, the premiere of The Bachelorette, and a two hour 24 event. Tuesday finds NCIS, The Mentalist, Without A Trace, DWTS and 90210 airing finales. In addition, Idol has the final performances, followed by a sneak peek at the Glee pilot. Old Christine, Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and Idol all have finales on Wednesday. Thursday, Ugly Betty finishes the season with two episodes, facing off against the premiere of So You Think You Can Dance. Finally, Don’t Forget The Lyrics returns to Friday, so we can have yet another number to compare against Terminator, Dollhouse, and Prison Break.

Photo Credit: ABC

American Idol – Where’re those votes goin’ … ???

Michael Noble — Sat, 16 May 2009 00:26:03 +0000

Really … ?!? Danny Gokey was the one to go … ?!?

The fact of the matter is: Yes. He got the boot. He was nixed. Cut off. Eighty-sixed. Heave-ho’d. Given the “See You On The Idol Tour!” send off. Clearly, his ouster from American Idol was a surprise. The consensus and overall buzz had Kris Allen hitting the road. (I did mention there might be surprises in my previous posting and, indeed, Danny’s exit was certainly a surprise.)

And now Kris and Adam Lambert are nestled in the top spots, awaiting next week’s showdown. And it will be interesting … it won’t be the “assumed” blowout everyone believes it to be. Do you really think Adam will be the ultimate winner of this contest? I’m not so certain.

You see … there are a few little tics out there that might just throw a wrench into the machine. Like the fact Adam and Kris participated in a coin toss to see what position they would jockey for. Kris was the winner of the toss and chose the second spot in the order, Adam going first. You don’t think that will come into play? Well … how ’bout all those votes that were once the property of The Gokester? Where do you think those are going to end up? They’re not just drifting off in a cloud of smoke, y’know. You can best believe a good number of them are heading Kris Allen’s way. You don’t really believe they’re being put in the coiffures of the “Screaming Mimi,” do you?

And there are more tics to come. Believe you me….

Both contestants will bring their “A” games next week. The fans of each will have their fingers taped for texting and dialing come voting time. All of you stay tuned for more surprises. It’s gonna be good….

Photo Credit: Fox

American Idol – The contestants aren’t the only ones fighting on Idol

Michael Noble — Wed, 13 May 2009 21:30:07 +0000

Everybody – everybody – did well last evening. Well … mostly.

All three guys stepped it up and performed swimmingly. And that’s exactly what they’re supposed to do; after all, they are aiming for the crowning achievement of Season 9 of American Idol — The Top Spot.

I still can’t get over the shrill, screechy, whiny, screamy all-over-the-placeness of Adam Lambert. But it is what it is. And was it just me or did he look like a demented elf from the Lord Of The Rings last night, especially during his first performance? I froze his mug on my television set mid-shriek at one point and the result was a possessed Adam staring back at me. Hackles rose at the back of my neck. And then, during his second performance, I swear he was the embodiment of the life-sized toy replica of Santa in The Santa Clause 2. He had that sheeny plastic look and evil smile of the faux Santa in the movie. *brrrrrrrrrr*

But the real fun last night was off stage at the judge’s table. ( It seems there’s always a party there of late.) Last eve, however, it was an arena for a grudge match.

I fully expected the gloves to come off ‘tween Simon Cowell and Kara DioGuardi. I tried looking around the corners of my TV to see if there were Idol roadies pulling out an Ultimate Fighting Championship Octagon cage so the two of them could go at it. I half expected Michael Buffer to come out and yell his signature “Let’s get ready to rumble!” after the commercial break.

The fracas broke out when Kara ragged on Kris Allen for not performing One Republic’s “Apologize” to her haughty standards. This was the judge’s song she and Randy Jackson hand-picked for Kris to perform. The result of Kara’s rant was summed up by Simon who blasted her critique later: “Kara, it’s a cop out what you said: You can’t choose a song for him and then blame him for doing the song.” That’s when the sniping and monkey business between the two started. I’m sure it’ll be on YouTube at some point shortly. (Oh .. and Kara? If you’re going to use a sport analogy, “Swingin’ it out of the park” isn’t one that will garner you any kudos. It just makes our heads turn sideways and our brows scrunch all wrinkly in confusion at what you mean.)

(Kris Allen Side Note: Nice nod to our little peapod Paula, Kris, for singing this tune. To me, it sounded as if “… there was no need to Pauler-gize” instead of “apologize.” *snort*)

This is a tough, tough call trying to get a grasp on who might be heading off the Idol stage this week. Each of the three deserves to advance. (Yes … even Adam.) Me thinks there might be some surprise fireworks in the mix ….

Photo Credit: Fox

Ratings Clack – Good news for Castle, not so much for Dollhouse

Brett Love — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:00:51 +0000

We’re on the verge of it now. Over the next two weeks all of our favorite shows are going to be ending, and some of those tough decisions will have to be made by the networks. These final few ratings numbers will play heavily in those decisions. With that in mind, the week brought good news for a couple of bubble shows (Castle, Lie To Me), and bad news for others (Better Off Ted, Cupid, The Unusuals, Dollhouse, Reaper, My Name Is Earl).

ABC - It was what has become a fairly standard week for the network. Good bits first. Things started off strong on Sunday with Extreme Makeover (9.18m/2.7), Desperate Housewives (13.49m/4.4), and Brothers & Sisters (9.97m/2.4). Dancing With The Stars continued to carry its weight on Monday (20.28m/4.8) and Tuesday (14.56m/3.2). Wednesday, while Lost (8.7m/4) was down in viewers, it remains a legit hit in the adult demo. The most exciting news came Thursday. Grey’s Anatomy (15.55m/5.4) has been regularly beating CSI in the demo for some time, but last week it took top honors in viewers as well. As a bonus, that led to more good numbers from the Michael J. Fox special (10.23m/3.1).

In other news, with DWTS expanded to two hours on Monday, Castle (9.97m/2.8) bounced back, and may have secured a second season. The outlook is not so bright for its midseason compatriots, Cupid (5.14m/1.6) and The Unusuals (4.63m/1.6). In comedy news, Tuesday’s combination of Scrubs (3.71m/1.5) and Better Off Ted (3.07m/1.2) remain a problem. Those numbers wouldn’t even be good enough for the top spot on The CW. The big Scrubs finale (5.07m/2) on Wednesday was better, but still a far cry from where it once was. Despite that, there are still rumors of the show continuing. Apparently, the episodes are worth so much in syndication that it’s worth dumping them on the network no matter what the ratings are. See the last 50 episodes of According To Jim.

NBC - Like ABC, the week got off to a good start, thanks to Celebrity Apprentice (8.63m/3.1). However, Monday brought quite the speedbump with Deal Or No Deal (4.35m/1.2) replacing Chuck. That’s a fifth place finish in the demo, behind Gossip Girl. A two hour Medium (7.24m/2.2) did what it could to save the night. Tuesday remains a strong night, thanks to Biggest Loser (9.13m/3.6) and L&O SVU (9.82m/3.7). The OG L&O didn’t do quite as well on Wednesday (8.14m/2.3). It’s probably time to trim the franchise a bit and come back with just SVU on NBC next season. Thursday was also a bit of a struggle. My Name Is Earl (4.47m/1.7) managed an all time low. That didn’t offer any help to Parks & Recreation (4.73m/2.1). The difficulties in the 8 o’clock hour make The Office (7.85m/3.9) look good by comparison, but those are low numbers for a new Office as well. Joining the fray, 30 Rock (6.13m/2.9) found its lowest number of the season when following a new Office. And Southland (6.61m/2)continues to pose questions. This is not the big drama replacement for ER the network hoped it would be.

FOX – Sunday came up as expected, with a notable change. Sit Down, Shut Up (2.06m/.8) was shuffled to 7:00, and will now finish out its run and go away. The Simpsons (6.66m/3.2), Family Guy (6.57m/3.5), and American Dad (5.35m/2.8) didn’t miss the quirky show, as King Of The Hill (4.99m/2.4) filled in. More of the usual followed. House (12.05m/4.6) and 24 (10.11m/3.3) were solid on Monday, while American Idol (23.41m/8.3) and Fringe (9.25m/3.8) took care of Tuesday. That Fringe demo number is down a couple ticks, but look for it to rebound with the finale, and a very special guest star.

Good news continued on Wednesday, as Lie To Me (8.68m/2.7) gained back some of the numbers it had lost. With the finals approaching, Idol (23.57m/8.3) was up as well. Thursday brought solid, if not spectacular numbers for Bones (8.76m/2.3) and Hell’s Kitchen (6.5m/2.7). And Friday, as expected, brought more terrible numbers for Prison Break (3.03m/.9) and the Dollhouse finale (2.75m/1). We’ll have to wait to find out for certain just what Dollhouse’s fate is, because strange things do occasionally happen. After all, there are two more seasons of Friday Night Lights on the horizon, and you could make a solid ratings case that there never should have been a second. That being said, with the finale garnering the lowest ratings of the series, season two seems a pipe dream.

CBS - Things were off to a pretty standard start for CBS as well. You can roll through the first four days and it’s all as expected. Sunday brought Amazing Race (10.84m/3.2), Cold Case (12.46m/2.9), and The Unit (8.84m/2). Monday, the comedies were all on par, with Big Bang Theory (9.25m/3.4), How I Met Your Mother (8.89m/3.6), 2 ½ Men (14.14m/5), and Rules Of Engagement (11.33m/4.1). They were followed by the always fluctuating, but still dominant, CSI: Miami (13.72m/4). Part two of the NCIS backdoor pilot (16.72m/3.4) led off Tuesday, followed by The Mentalist (16.68m/3.6) and Without A Trace (11.83m/2.6).

Things get a little more complicated on Wednesday and Thursday. I’m still not sure what the network will ultimately make of Old Christine (6.45m/1.9) and Gary Unmarried (6.66m/2). I still believe that Gary would fit perfectly out of 2 ½ Men, and could do well splitting the season with Rules Of Engagement, but with these numbers either, or both, of them could be gone. Criminal Minds (14.13m/3.3) and CSI: NY (13.4m/3.3) remain a solid combo to finish the night. Thursday, as we’ve been following for weeks now, CSI (14.91m/3.6) continues to struggle. And that is struggle in the relative sense. These are good numbers, unless you are talking about CSI, which should be grabbing another 4 million viewers and a point in the demo. Earlier in the night, Survivor (11.99m/3.8) easily won the hour. Finally, Friday was the usual walk for Ghost Whisperer (9.35m/2.2), Flashpoint (8.64m/1.8), and Numb3rs (9.52m/2).

CW - I’d like to say there was some controversy with the CW numbers, but with all of the early renewals announced, the writing is on the wall. So, the fact that Reaper (1.89m/.9) again edged out 90210 (1.84m/.9) on Tuesday probably doesn’t mean anything for the fates of either of them. One of them will be back next year, and it’s not the fun one with the stripper clowns and the Honey Pie from Feast. On Monday, Gossip Girl (2.22m/1.3) and One Tree Hill (2.23m/1.1) soldiered on. Wednesday saw Top Model (3.82m/1.7) again take the top spot for the week, and again be followed by a 90210 repeat that nobody watches. Thursday, Smallville (3.39m/1.5) and Supernatural (2.79m/1.2) were at par. And, while I usually dismiss the CW Friday, it is worth noting that The Game (2.05m/.9) also managed to top 90210.

For the week ahead, it’s a finale extravaganza. House and Castle take center stage on Monday, as both have their season finales. Tuesday, in a three hour event, the winner of The Biggest Loser is announced. Get out your sliderule for Wednesday, and just try and follow the time travel shenanigans in the Lost finale. Lie To Me will also call it a season. Then things get really crazy on Thursday. Tune in for finales from Grey’s Anatomy, My Name Is Earl, Parks & Recreation, The Office, 30 Rock, CSI, Smallville, Supernatural, Bones, and Hell’s Kitchen. Wow. And the week wraps up with Friday finales for Ghost Whisperer, Flashpoint, Numb3rs, Prison Break, and The Game.

Photo Credit: ABC

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