CliqueClack TV » Dexter

One of Trinity’s family killed Lundy on Dexter

Keith McDuffee — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:00:33 +0000

Sick of my theories yet? Well too bad, here’s another!

Last week, with hat in hand, I posted how my theory of Quinn being Lundy’s and Deb’s shooter was null and void. Given that we have new evidence that shows the shooter is very likely Vince’s height, there’s just no way it could be Quinn without giving us some half-brained reasoning for why he was standing in a ditch at the time. So now the question is: is the shooter someone we’ve already met, or someone entirely new? I’m going with the latter.

More than a few people have pinned the Lundy shooting on Christine, the reporter. She fits the height requirement, but I just don’t buy it. Why? Well, it makes no sense. There’s really no palatable motive there. One argument could be that she did it to generate a story for her endangered career, but I’m totally not buying that. Would you really be satisfied with that reasoning, should she be outed as the shooter? How lame!

Instead, I’m putting what money I have left (from what I lost on the Quinn bet) on the shooter being one of Arthur Mitchell’s family, most likely his wife. It’s possible that, at 5′6″, she’s a little taller than Vince, but not by much. The kids are definitely within that height range, though, and they have just as much motive for taking out Lundy. The motive here is that, unbeknownst to Dexter — and possibly even Arthur — Arthur’s family (or at least the shooter in the family) knows what he’s doing. They know about it and allow for it.

This all makes sense when you think about the theme for this season: family. It’s been all about family and how Dexter has needed his space and needed to provide for and support a loving, happy family. As part of what Dexter needs to keep “sane” and to keep his family together and happy, he has to feed his Dark Passenger. However, all along he’s had to do this by himself, with no one else there to support him, stand by him or understand him.

At the end of this season, Dexter will find out the truth of the Mitchell family. They are a family who supports a loving father, no matter what it is he has to “take care of” to keep him happy and “relaxed,” as his wife put it. Meanwhile, Dexter’s wife Rita will continue to not understand her secretive husband as she drifts further away from him and, most likely, resorts to cheating on him with their neighbor. It’ll be a situation that’s been impossible for Dex to imagine this season: a wife and family who understand him fully and supports what he needs, without making conditions and without getting in the way.

There aren’t many episodes left this season, so I wanted to get that theory out there before it possibly became more obvious. It’d make up for my Quinn flub earlier. Right?

Photo Credit: Showtime

Dexter – My theory of Quinn being the shooter is shot

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:00:40 +0000

This episode pretty much shattered my theory that Quinn could be Lundy’s and Deb’s shooter, if we’re supposed to trust the new evidence that the shooter is Vince’s height. As you can see from the image above, Masuka is quite a bit shorter than Quinn, so unless he was crouched or standing in a pothole, Quinn is not the guilty one here.

So, who is the shooter then? It’s possible that we’re dealing with another unknown and simply haven’t yet met this person, but I’m not getting that feeling this time. I’m going to place my bets that the shooter is a woman. So, with that in mind, I’m going with either Christine the reporter — who is definitely shorter than Quinn and could be about Vince’s height — or Arthur Mitchell’s wife, who secretly knows who her husband is and shot Lundy to protect his identity. Actually, maybe it’s one of Mitchell’s kids doing the dirty work — they seem to be about Vince’s height, whereas his wife seems a bit taller (actress Julia Campbell is reported to be 5′9″, which seems taller than C.S. Lee [Vince]). So it could still be a male, just a Vince-short male.

As far as Rita is concerned, the neighbor is definitely going to be slipping into the sack with her before long; no doubt about that. The question is how will Dexter react when he inevitably finds out? Remember that in season one Dexter barely cared about sex at all. So would this newly-discovered “human” side of Dexter also bring along with it a sense of jealous rage? It’ll be interesting to see, because I’d find it a big surprise if he were to care. Ultimately it could be a way of Rita being taken out of the picture and Dexter having his freedom back. I mean, come on, let’s face it: Rita’s been annoying as hell this season. As much as I love Julie Benz, Rita’s gotta go … or at least her meddling attitude does.

I’m still holding on to the thought that Dexter will ultimately let Arthur Mitchell live. Unlike most (all?) of Dexter’s previous kills, Mitchell is sick in a different way. He gets no enjoyment out of his kills, and should Dexter get him on his table, Mitchell would gladly welcome being killed, without rage and without pleas of help. I’m not sure Dex has had anyone welcome his scalpel before, so it’ll be interesting to see what it does to him.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Ratings Clack – Should FOX switch Fringe and Lie To Me?

Brett Love — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:00:23 +0000

After the dramatic entrance of V last week, there were no similar big splash stories to lead things off this week. Then, as I was perusing the year-ago numbers, something occurred to me. It’s quite possible that FOX could improve both Monday and Thursday at 9:00 if they swapped Fringe and Lie To Me. If you look back to the initial Fringe run, it had a lot of success following House. In fact, while the House numbers are virtually unchanged from Tuesday to Monday, Fringe was holding much more of the House audience on Tuesday than Lie To Me currently is on Monday.

Example:
11/18/08: House (13.03m/5.5), Fringe (9.36m/4.2)
11/09/09: House (13.31m/5.3), Lie To Me (7.41m/3)

And that was against very similar competition. Both faced DWTS on ABC, which was pretty much a wash. NBC was greatly improved against Fringe with Biggest Loser (7.84m/3.3), as opposed to Trauma (5.35m/1.8). And CBS was mixed, with The Mentalist (15.83m/3.5) trailing the Men/Big Bang hour (13.62m/4.6) in the demo.

Now we look at where we are this season. Fringe did manage something of a rebound this week, finishing with (5.91m/2.2) on Thursday. That’s still a distant fourth place, and should find the show on the hot seat at the end of the season. It would, obviously, do better on Monday following House. The question is, would it do better than the (7.41m/3) that Lie To Me is currently offering? I think it would.

On the other side of that coin, while I’m not quite as confident about the move of Lie To Me to Thursday, I do still see the potential for it to outperform the current Fringe numbers. That bar has been set, after all, rather low. It would likely take a hit in the move, but the end result would be that Thursday at 9:00 is stronger as well. Just something to think about. The usual numbers junk is after the jump.

ABC - The bubble burst on V (10.7m/3.8) rather quickly. Sure, that’s still a very nice number, but it’s also a heck of a one week drop. Consider the jury still out on this one until we see what episodes three and four bring to the table. Earlier in the week, the return of football on NBC brought Sunday’s Extreme Makeover (10.38m/3), Desperate Housewives (13.79m/4.4), and Brothers & Sisters (9.08m/2.9) down a tad. It was still a successful start to the week.

The good news continued as Dancing With The Stars (17.62m/3.4) and Castle (9.82m/2.4) both gained viewers. The DWTS Results (16.23m/3.5) were up as well, despite the V drop. The news wasn’t so good for The Forgotten, as In The Spotlight with Robin Roberts (9.34m/2.3) finished well above what the show has been doing. Wednesday, the CMA Awards (17.18m/5.3) were a huge improvement over the usual comedies and Eastwick. FlashForward (8.28m/2.6) sunk to third in both measures to kick off Thursday, while Grey’s Anatomy (14.87m/5.6) and Private Practice (10.25m/3.9) were both up. Ugly Betty (4.45m/1.3) finished things off on Friday.

FOX - The network didn’t really gain anything with the all-Seth night, featuring Family Guy (7.26m/3.7), Seth & Alex (6.73m/3.4), Family Guy (7.99m/4.1), and Cleveland (6.44m/3.2). The news was better on Monday as House (13.31m/5.3) remained the clear demo leader on the night. So You Think You Can Dance remained steady, if not impressive, on Tuesday (5.76m/2.3) and Wednesday (5.72m/2.2), while Glee (7.53m/3.4) was tied for #1 in the demo with Criminal Minds. Thursday, Bones (10.22m/2.9) took over the #2 spot from FlashForward. And Friday, repeats again topped the recent comedy/Dollhouse combo.

CBS - The good news is that Sunday was up across the board with Amazing Race (11.62m/3.5), Three Rivers (7.99m/1.8), and Cold Case (8.16m/1.7). The bad news is that those numbers from 9:00 to 11:00 are too low. Things were better on Monday. The network was down slightly from 8:00 to 9:00 with How I Met Your Mother (8.67m/3.5) and Accidentally On Purpose (7.89m/2.9). Then, up with 2 ½ Men (14.44m/4.6) and Big Bang Theory (12.8m/4.7). At 10:00 is where the real magic started.

The big crossover CSI event led to gains for Miami (14.38m/4), NY (14.51m/3.8), and the OG CSI (17.38m/4.1). He didn’t get to be part of the big event, but Gibbs and the crew at NCIS (20.96m/4.4) easily returned to the top of the Tuesday pyramid. That was good news for NCIS: LA (16.23m/3.7) and The Good Wife (13.35m/2.8) as well. Old Christine (7.19m/2.1) and Gary Unmarried (7.3m/2.4) were both up on Wednesday, despite that CMA increase at ABC. Criminal Minds (12.77m/3.4) was solid. Although, that demo battle with Glee could prove very interesting.

Thursday, as with CSI, Survivor (12.94m/4) was up too. The Mentalist (16.17m/3.6) was off a bit in viewers, but is still having a very good second season. And Friday was another easy win for the night by Ghost Whisperer (8.01m/2), Medium (8.16m/1.9), and Numb3rs (8.16m/1.8).

NBC – The return of Sunday Night Football (21.88m/8.5) was certainly welcome. Hopefully, it softened the blow of another series low for Heroes (5.26m/2.3), and the further struggles of Trauma (5.35m/1.8). The Biggest Loser (9.65m/3.8) remains a success on Tuesday. Mercy (6.68m/1.7), on the other hand, can only claim that it is an improvement over the Knight Rider numbers. L&O: SVU (8.77m/2.8) remains a mystery. That was good for fourth place, again, but it is headed in the right direction. And that 2.8 demo is starting to look really good given the rest of the NBC schedule.

Thursday was more of the same as Community (5.09m/2.1) and Parks & Recreation (4.58m/2.1) again fell short of the Kath & Kim bar (11/06: 5.57m/2.4). By comparison, things look pretty good for The Office (8.05m/4.2) and 30 Rock (6m/3). Law & Order (7.5m/1.7) finished things up on Friday.

CW - The week got off to a very good start as One Tree Hill (2.67m/1.3), Gossip Girl (2.37m/1.3), and 90210 (2.06m/1.2) all saw gains. That was the highest rated Gossip Girl since the season premiere. Things didn’t go so well for Melrose Place (1.28m/.7). It would seem that the network is just waiting to see what difference Heather Locklear makes before pulling the plug.

Next Top Model (3.2m/1.5) was again nipping at NBC’s heels in the demo on Wednesday. As was Vampire Diaries (4.1m/1.9) on Thursday. Supernatural (2.69m/1.3) was on par as well. Finally, Smallville (2.7m/1.2) continued to defy the odds on Friday, drawing more viewers than OTH, GG, 90210, Melrose, and Supernatural.

Cable - It’s probably way too early for the folks down at Stargate HQ to be getting nervous, but concern might be in order. Friday 11/06 found the Universe dropping again, to (1.63m/.7). That didn’t do any favors for Sanctuary (1.42m/.5). It will be very interesting to see where the show levels out. Over at USA, White Collar (3.85m/.9) continues to search for a level as well. Other cable numbers to consider:

Mad Men (2.32m/.8)
Dexter (1.76m/.9)
Lincoln Heights (1.03m/.4)
Sons Of Anarchy (3.83m/1.9)
Nip/Tuck (1.75m/.9)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (.98m/.3)
Bored To Death (.63m/.3)
Californication (.76m/.4)
Rita Rocks (.48m/.2)
South Park (2.78m/1.5)
Secret Girlfriend (1.19m/.6)
It’s Always Sunny (1.87m/1.2)
The League (1.03m/.6)
Monday Night Football (16m/6.5)
The Hills (2.1m/1.3)
Top Chef (3.02m/1.7)
Mythbusters (2.13m/.9)
Ghost Hunters (2.91m/1.4)
Ghost Hunters Academy (2.07m/.9)
Project Runway (3.13m/1.4)
Keeping Up With The Kardashians (3.17m/1.7)

Photo Credit: FOX

Ratings Clack – V gets off to a great start

Brett Love — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:30:08 +0000

The World Series was the big ratings winner last week, but with New York involved, everyone kind of expected that, right? What nobody expected — most notably ABC — was the success of the V premiere. The numbers weren’t just good. It was the highest rated scripted program on the network, topping the Housewives and Grey’s. Even better, the V demo rating was the highest for a scripted show on any of the networks. Someone at ABC has to be kicking themselves for only ordering four episodes of V, while they continue to crank out more Hanks than they know what to do with.

ABC – It was the big show for the week, so we’ll start with the V (14.3m/5.2) premiere on Tuesday. Even more impressive, it did that against Biggest Loser and NCIS. Not an easy timeslot. That was obviously unexpected, or production wouldn’t have been cut to 4, for now. It makes the results of episode two very interesting. How much of that audience will be back for more? That huge leap in the 8 o’clock hour didn’t do anything for the rest of the night. The Dancing With The Stars results show (15.05m/3.1) was up just a tenth in the demo, and The Forgotten (7.27m/1.9) actually managed to lose a million viewers week-to-week.

Earlier in the week, things were pretty standard on Sunday with Extreme Makeover (10.75m/3.3), Desperate Housewives (14.08m/5), and Brothers & Sisters (9.02m/3.3). Monday, Dancing With The Stars (16.69m/3.4) and Castle (9.43m/2.4) were both off just a bit, but we’ll chalk that up to baseball. Wednesday remains a mixed bag as Hank (5.09m/1.3), The Middle (6.04m/1.8), and Eastwick (4.44m/1.5) all continue to struggle. Modern Family (8.77m/3.5) and Cougar Town (6.87m/2.8) do like solid performers, however.

FlashForward (8.57m/2.6) makes Thursday interesting. It continues to drop, and you have to wonder if the audience is just giving up on it already. It long ago lost track of Survivor, and this week was also topped by Bones. Grey’s Anatomy (13.95m/5.1) and Private Practice (9.11m/3.4) remain a successful pairing. Friday, Ugly Betty (4.76m/1.3) remained steady, but the big surprise was from the Rihana episode of 20/20 (8.18m/2.7).

CBS - It was, for the most part, another very solid week. Sunday was steady, with Amazing Race (11.22m/3.3), Three Rivers (7.7m/1.6), and Cold Case (9.02m/1.7). Of course, that steady means that Three Rivers remains a disappointment and its future prospects are not good. Monday was also solid with How I Met Your Mother (8.82m/3.5), Accidentally On Purpose (8.09m/3.1), 2 ½ Men (13.51m/4.4), Big Bang Theory (12.73m/4.7), and CSI: Miami (12.52m/3.6). Those numbers are off a bit, but we’ll give them a World Series pass as well.

Tuesday, that giant V premiere didn’t do much to slow down the NCIS (20.18m/4.3) juggernaut. NCIS:LA (15.29m/3.6) and The Good Wife (12.74m/2.7) were also on par. Wednesday brought a slightly baseball-weakened combination of Old Christine (6.68m/2), Gary Unmarried (6.29m/2), Criminal Minds (12.55m/3.4), and CSI:NY (12m/2.8).

Thursday, Survivor (12.44m/3.7) is again firmly in control of the hour. More interesting, The Mentalist (16.21m/3.6) topped CSI (15.6m/3.5) in both measures again. The troubling bit came on Friday, as Ghost Whisperer (7.93m/1.8) and Medium (7.58m/1.8) both lost to Law & Order, while Numb3rs (8.09m/1.8) was beaten by 20/20. I can’t remember the last time CBS was beaten in all three Friday hours while running all new episodes.

FOX - The World Series was the story last week. Games on Sunday (22.76m/7.8), Monday (17.09m/5.3), and Wednesday (22.34m/7.4) all did extremely well. So You Think You Can Dance (6.12m/2.4) held down the fort on Tuesday, and Bones (8.66m/2.6) and Fringe (4.86m/1.7) were back on Thursday. Bones moved to #2 in the hour, while Fringe remains a distant fourth.

The quick reaction is to blame the time slot, but compare it to what So You Think You Can Dance is up against on Tuesday at 8. ABC gains 5.73m/2.6. NBC gains 3.93m/2. CBS gains 7.74m/.6. That’s 17.3 million more viewers, and 5.2 more demo points facing SYTYCD, and it still outperformed Fringe. There is also the argument that because World Series Game 7 was scheduled Thursday, people didn’t know it was on. Unfortunately, that doesn’t explain the fact that Bones still managed 8.6 million viewers, or all those other weeks of subpar Fringe numbers. And in case you were wondering, House and Bones repeats on Friday again topped the Brothers, Til Death, and Dollhouse numbers.

NBC - With no football in prime time this week, the big success actually came on Friday. Law & Order is finally showing a little life, with episodes at 8 (7.99m/1.8) and 9 (8.41m/1.9) both winning their hours. Earlier in the week, it was more of the same on Monday from Heroes (5.86m/2.5) and Trauma (5.82m/1.9). The Biggest Loser (9.11m/3.5) remains a solid hit on Tuesday. Wednesday, Mercy (6.63m/1.7) and SVU (7.95m/2.4) were off, but it was the final game of the World Series, so let’s wait and see.

Thursday, Community (5.45m/2.3) and Parks & Recreation (4.91m/2.2) were both up. However, they do both remain below what Kath & Kim (5.57m/2.4) were doing at this time last year. The Office (8.09m/4.1) and 30 Rock (6.15m/3) continue along the same path. Leno had another rough week, falling below 4 million viewers once, and below 1.5 in the demo three times. I’m starting to think that Leno one night a week might not be a bad idea. Give him the post Biggest Loser slot, and return scripted to the other four hours. The numbers:

Monday: 3.92m/1.2
Tuesday: 5.96m/2
Wednesday: 4.81m/1.4
Thursday: 4.83m/1.6
Friday: 4.6m/1.2

CW - Nothing too exciting to report this week. One Tree Hill (2.32m/1.1) and Gossip Girl (1.98m/1) look to have taken a small hit from baseball. 90210 (1.92m/1) and Melrose Place (1.48m/.8) continue to struggle as we all wait to see what Heather Locklear will do to the Melrose numbers. Next Top Model (3.87m/1.7) was up, despite baseball. Thursday remains the strongest night of the week with Vampire Diaries (4.09m/1.9) and Supernatural (2.65m/1.2). And Smallville (2.76m/1.2) continues to grow.

CABLE - Not a lot to yell about on cable this week either. It is worth noting that the second episode of White Collar (5.075m/1.2), from 10/30, held up very well. It looks like USA has found a few more characters. Stargate Universe (1.97m/.8), from the same night, found itself falling below the 2 million viewer mark. Sanctuary (1.6m/.5) and Monk (4.69m/1) were fairly steady. Some other numbers:

Mad Men (1.78m/.7)
Dexter (1.88m/.9)
Lincoln Heights (1.11m/.3)
Greek (.66m/.3)
Sons Of Anarchy (3.52m/1.8)
Nip/Tuck (2.17m/1.1)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (.98m/.4)
Bored To Death (.72m/.4)
Californication (.82m/.4)
South Park (2.82m/1.5)
It’s Always Sunny (1.99m/1.3)
The League (1.41m/.9)
Monday Night Football (12.37m/5.1)
Kate: Her Story (3.79m/1.7)
The Hills (1.99m/1.2)
Mythbusters (1.82m/.8)
Ghost Hunters (2.73m/1.3)

Photo Credit: ABC

Dexter – Anyone else getting a Doakes vibe again?

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:00:04 +0000

Dexter (thinks): “I have to find the right activity for Astor. What did I like to do when I was twelve? … OK then, moving on.”

Well well well. It appears I spoke too soon in my wondering where Dexter’s non-Trinity killings were. I guess I sold Dexter’s habit short. He couldn’t deal with waiting even one or two more days to kill Farrow, performing his own version of sneaking out for a smoke during his camping trip with Cody. However, usually when someone goes out for a cigarette break they don’t grab the wrong brand.
Unfortunately, I saw this mistake coming. Dexter was rushing the operation way too much, and he was damn lucky to have seen Quinn tailing him at the bar. First Doakes, now Quinn. Dexter should be very scared that he’s being careless in his hunts, and I’m betting he really is scared now that he took down an innocent. There was just not enough research done on Dexter’s part to nail down Farrow as the true killer; I saw it being the assistant a mile away.

In other news, it looks like Dexter’s apartment will still be an active location on the series. I’m pretty sure that means nothing at all, since Dexter’s already moved the slides and killing implements. At least the opening sequence makes a little sense now that he’s moved out. And, who knows, he may be “sent to the dog house” by Rita in a future episode, and he’ll be the one rooming with Deb rather than the other way around.

Speaking of Quinn, anyone else getting the Doakes vibe again? He’s poking around Dexter’s business, and that didn’t end up too well last time. I will admit, though, that Quinn’s actions in this episode are throwing off my theory of him being the Lundy killer. There’s still time to figure that out, though, but I’m curious to see just how close he gets to finding out more about Dexter.

With Trinity, have you noticed that Dexter is almost playing the role of Miguel Prado from season three, working his way to being a “friend” of Trinity? He’s just weaseling his way in more and more, trying to gain Trinity’s trust while plotting out just how he’s going to kill him. At this point I’m actually thinking Dexter may let Trinity live. He’ll share his own Dark Passenger secret with Trinity, and they’ll be serial killer buddies. It certainly would be a different twist on things, should the show end up with Trinity walking away. This all hinges on wether or not Trinity was the one who shot Lundy and Deb, which I’m still not convinced of.

Finally, along the lines I said earlier about Dexter being careless, him saving the photo of his mother in his work desk is no doubt going to come back to haunt him. He’d better find a damn good place to hide that, or else one of the women in his life is going to need some ’splainin’ from Dex.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Will Trinity be Dexter’s 24th slide?

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:00:29 +0000

In case you missed the details in Sunday night’s episode, a close-up of Dexter’s new slide box reveals that, at least since obtaining his new trophy case, he’s filled it with blood slides of 23 victims. So far it appears that Dexter’s got only one kill on his mind, and that’s Trinity; I just can’t imagine we’d get a “filler” episode at this point, where Dexter needs to go get his rocks off while he’s plotting how to take down Trinity.

This episode didn’t really do it for me, as a whole. Oh sure, most of the details we got behind Trinity were neat, but there was just something off about it. For example, I never really get how some of the secondary relationship stories fit in, in a way that makes them interesting, like Batista and LaGuerta. Interesting characters, yes. A relationship I care to see the details of as much as we have, no. You think they’re going to go somewhere significant with their stories, and they usually just don’t.

Now, let’s get to Dexter and Trinity. I may be reading too much into this — and I usually do with this show — but the constant noting that Trinity used a “framing” hammer seemed overly mentioned. I get that a framing hammer is different than, say, a ball-peen hammer or an upholstery hammer, but it just seemed like the show was driving that detail into our heads (no pun intended) more than usual. So, I initially thought they were making a pun on Trinity “framing” Dexter for the murders. Then when we saw Trinity (well, let’s call him Authur Mitchell) give Dexter said hammer, I thought maybe there was something to my theory. Anyone else get that?

Also consider that Dexter now has his prints all over the cremation urn and, most likely, Mitchell has some of Dexter’s blood from the paper towel. Could it be that Mitchell will do a little digging of his own, learn who Dexter really is, and then plant the rest of the evidence to point the finger at Dexter? I think it’s unlikely, but I’m not ruling it out. There are just too many details that wouldn’t add up, including the murders all over the country.

Something else that bugged me in this episode was Dexter’s experiment with Trinity, grabbing the urn. I get that he was seeing what would happen, should he push Mitchell’s buttons, but the sinister look on his face as he held it? And what explanation was he about to give, should Mitchell ask what he was doing? I know if I caught some dude holding an open urn of dead person’s ashes in my living room, I’d be expecting a really good answer and then, yeah, he’d get an ass kicking. Or maybe the other way around.

As far as my Quinn theory on shooting Lundy and Deb, I’m sticking to it. I watched him closely in this episode, and he just seems shifty over this whole Vacation Murders thing, to me. Now that we know Johnny Rose and his girlfriend didn’t shoot Deb and Lundy (or, at least, the girlfriend is very convincing), I’m even more convinced Quinn is behind it. Why else did we not see the shooter’s face, other than to find out the shooter is not Mitchell? The only other possibility would be Anton, and I’m not buying that one.

We end things off with Dexter fully moving into the new home, complete with his slasher shack of goods, implements, slides, air conditioner and all. Maybe it really is time for Dexter to get a new intro, now that the apartment really is history?

Photo Credit: Showtime

Ratings Clack – The Mentalist knocks off CSI

Brett Love — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:00:29 +0000

A combination of baseball and pre-sweeps repeats made for a bit of an odd week. Repeats don’t mean there aren’t numbers of note however. We had Jay Leno’s first shot against CSI: Miami and NY repeats, and a look at what running repeats on Friday does for FOX. That is, nothing good for Dollhouse season 3. Also interesting this week — The Mentalist finally topped CSI in viewers and the demo, and even a repeat Gibbs appearance is worth 16 million viewers.

FOX - Having the baseball playoffs paid off big for the network when NY joined the party. The three contests last week included ALCS Game 6 (15.48m/5.2) on Sunday, and World Series Game 1 (19.51m/6.3) and Game 2 (18.9m/5.8) on Wednesday and Thursday. Needless to say, those were some serious gains over the usual occupants.

Elsewhere, So You Think You Can Dance (5.85m/2.6) was well off the usual House number in it’s one-time stop on Monday. On a brighter note, with CBS in repeats, it still finished #2 in the hour. Lie To Me (6.33m/2.4) struggled without the House lead in. There were similar numbers for the first SYTYCD competition episode (6.47m/2.5) on Tuesday. The only other number of note came from the House (3.4m/1.1) repeat on Friday, which topped the usual Brothers, Til Death, and Dollhouse combination.

ABC - The week got off to a steady start with Sunday’s Extreme Makeover (10.59m/3), Desperate Housewives (14.18m/4.7), and Brothers & Sisters (9.97m/3.3). On Monday, Dancing With The Stars (17.38m/3.6) was steady in the demo. That’s positive news for Castle (9.99m/2.5), which was up a tenth. There were more gains on Tuesday, as Charlie Brown (8.8m/2.8) easily bested the usual performance of Shark Tank. DWTS (15.2m/3) was down in the demo over the previous week, but The Forgotten (8.26m/2) still managed to grow.

Charlie Brown (6m/2) also proved to be an improvement over Hank on Wednesday. The rest of the night, including The Middle (6.49m/2.2), Modern Family (9.33m/3.7), Cougar Town (7.54m/3.2), and Eastwick (5.02m/1.8), was up as well. Less exciting, FlashForward (8.92m/2.7) managed to find series lows on Thursday. Grey’s Anatomy (13.74m/5.2) was down week-to-week, but still the highest rated scripted program for the night. Private Practice (9.16m/3.6) continues to hold up well. Friday, Ugly Betty (4.5m/1.2) was steady, if not impressive.

CBS - The week started with a reasonably steady full slate on Sunday, featuring Amazing Race (11.22m/3.4), Three Rivers (7.78m/1.7), and Cold Case (9.3m/1.8). Then, there were a whole lot of repeats as the network took Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday off. Of note among those was the Monday 9-10 comedy block winning the hour in the demo. Tuesday, NCIS (16.7m/3.3) was the most watched show of the night. And CSI: Miami and NY both won their hours outright.

New programming picked back up Thursday with Survivor (12.19m/3.7), CSI (15.24m/3.4), and The Mentalist (15.53m/3.6). That is of particular note, given that it’s the first time The Mentalist has beaten CSI in viewers and demo this season. Friday was down week-to-week, but the network still won all three hours with Ghost Whisperer (8.28m/2), Medium (7.69m/1.8), and Numb3rs (7.74m/1.8).

NBC – It was, for the most part, a fairly steady week. Sunday Night Football (14.98m/5.9) was off a bit facing baseball, but still a huge winner for the network. Heroes (5.72m/2.5) was right on pace with last week. Oddly enough, Trauma (5.78m/1.9) was actually up for the week in which it was canceled. The Biggest Loser (9.67m/3.7) continued to cruise on Tuesday. And NBC got an animation boost of their own as Monsters vs Aliens (6.24m/2.2) improved on the Mercy demo on Wednesday.

Law & Order SVU (8.24m/2.8) was down in viewers, despite the Criminal Minds repeat. I suppose we can chalk that up to baseball. Thursday, Community (5.32m/2.1) was the only show that was actually up week-to-week. Parks & Recreation (4.8m/2), The Office (8.21m/4.2), and 30 Rock (6.1m/3.1) were all down, but close enough to expected averages. Friday, Law & Order (7m/1.4) continued to struggle.

Leno didn’t have a good week. Before the premiere, one of the network’s talking points was that while the show will get beat by originals, wait until it airs against repeats. We’ve seen what that looks like, and it’s not good news for Jay. Not only is Leno still being beaten by repeats, the numbers are still dropping. This week, Leno against a repeat CSI:Miami finished below Leno against a new CSI:Miami last week. Friday also brought the lowest demo in the series.

Mon – 4.74m/1.3
Tue – 6.06m/1.8
Wed – 5.03m/1.5
Thu – 4.41m/1.5
Fri – 5.14m/1.2

CW - The little network had a very good week. They took Tuesday off, but the other four nights were all up over the previous week. One Tree Hill (2.67m/1.3) and Gossip Girl (2.31m/1.2) took advantage of the missing House and repeat comedies. Next Top Model (3.51m/1.6) actually faced much stiffer competition with World Series Game 1, but looks to have gained some of those displaced SYTYCD viewers. Vampire Diaries (4.18m/2) and Supernatural (2.92m/1.4) were at the highest levels we’ve seen since the premiere. Smallville (2.6m/1.2) wrapped the winning week on Friday.

CABLE – The shine has worn off The Jeff Dunham Show (2.33m/1) rather quickly, as week two had less than half the viewers of week one. The other notable bit from the cable world was the premiere of FX’s new comedy, The League (.99m/.6), which is much better than its ratings might lead you to believe.

From the previous Friday, 10/23, here are a few of the cable numbers:

Stargate: Universe (2.02m/.8)
Sanctuary (1.69m/.5)
Monk (5.42m/1.5)
White Collar (5.4m/1.4)
Wizards of Waverly Place (4.39m/.8)

And from the week just completed:

Mad Men (1.72m/.6)
Dexter (1.68m/.8)
Greek (.77m/.4)
Sons Of Anarchy (3.39m/1.8)
Nip/Tuck (2.2m/1.1)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (1.05m/.4)
Californication (.77m/.4)
Bored To Death (.65m/.3)
South Park (2.57m/1.3)
Secret Girlfriend (1.38m/.7)
It’s Always Sunny (1.35m/.8)
Top Chef (3.04m/1.7)
Project Runway (3.24m/1.4)
The Hills (2.05m/1.2)
Dirty Jobs (2.31m/.9)
Mythbusters (2.56m/1)
Ghost Hunters (3.06m/1.4)

Photo Credit: CBS

Quotation Marks – Batman, Emperor Palpatine, and sexy kittens

Ivey West — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:54:39 +0000

Halloween week on TV always is fun. Costumes, parties, and horror stories, oh my! This week wasn’t all about the Day of the Dead, however. We saw Derek buck the odds (and his boss) and perform a miracle like surgery, NBC cancel my favorite new show of year (Favorite show not named Glee that is), and the folks from Supernatural meet their future counterparts. And its not even November Sweeps yet!!

Community

“Batman.” — Jeff
“Yeah.” — Abed
“Are you staying for the party?” — Jeff
“If I stay, there can be no party. I must be out there in the night, staying vigilant. Wherever a party needs to be saved, I’m there. Wherever there are masks, or there’s tomfoolery and joy, I’m there. But sometimes I’m not, ’cause I’m out in the night, staying vigilant, watching, lurking, running, jumping, hurtling, sleeping. No, I can’t sleep. I don’t sleep. You sleep. I’m awake. I don’t sleep. I don’t blink. Am I a bird? No. I’m a bat. I am Batman … or am I? Yes, I am Batman. Happy Halloween.” — Abed

“Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the dead, is often referred to as Mexican Halloween.” — Annie
“Which is actually quite offensive to people familiar with “Mexican Halloween” as a sexual position.” — Mr. Chang

Greek

“My parents don’t celebrate Thanksgiving; they side with the Native Americans. And the turkey — they’re vegetarians.” — Cappie

“I care about old people … I watch Desperate Housewives.” — Rebecca

The Middle

“And I’m the one who needs testing.” — Brick to Frankie after Sue comes through chasing a tennis ball

“Ketchup packets?” — Mike
“They’re my security condiments; they soothe me.” — Brick

“It was fun. It was a little loud, but I got some reading done.” — Brick to Frankie, on how basketball was

The Office

“I want to sell your blood.” — Creed’s take on Dracula

“I’m not usually the butt of the joke; I’m usually the face of the joke.” — Michael

“I could get a fish for a five-cent worm.” — Michael
“Oh, you’re paying way too much for worms, man. Who’s your worm guy?” — Creed

Parks and Recreation

“Hey slutty teenaged girls dressed as sexy kittens, pump your own stomachs this year!” — Anne

The Vampire Diaries

“OK, Count Deepak.” — Damon to Stefan on his “we’re all our own person” speech to Vicki

“Why do I have to pee? I thought I was dead.” — Vicki

Modern Family

“Am I driving him to school or is he riding his burro?” — Jay to Gloria about Manny wearing his poncho to school

“Usually we just gave time outs.” — Claire to Mitchell, when he asked her if she ever banged her kids’ heads against the wall.

Supernatural

“I didn’t know what you were. Have you seen you? You look like …” — Sam
“The old chick from Titanic. I know, shut up.” — Old Dean
“I was going to say Emperor Palpatine.” — Sam

30 Rock

“Hey Tracy, did you hear? Fred Dawkins, the incredibly overweight guy that Pacman was based on died last night.” — Frank
“I will eat a bowl of cherries and some ghost meat in his honor.” — Tracy

“I”m not going to be pushed aside and forgotten, like that time at my sister’s funeral.” — Jenna

“Good God Lemon, your breath. When did you find the time to eat a diaper that you found on the beach?” — Jack to Liz

Dexter

“If my face was all over the media for shooting a cop and a Fed … I’d be digging a fucking hole all the way to China.” — Vince
“…” — Everyone Else
“No one fucking go there.” — Vince

Grey’s Anatomy

“Don’t worry … Being ditched by cancer wife won’t change my mind, you’re still a douche.” — Reed to Karev

“Today, if you become frightened, instead, become inspired.” — Isaac to Derek

Trauma

“You’re giving a naked co-ed a sponge bath in my copter?” — Marisa to Rabbit

Photo Credit: NBC

Dexter theories: Lundy and Quinn aren’t all they seem

Keith McDuffee — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:43:43 +0000

After watching this past Sunday’s episode of Dexter, for me, a couple of things about two of the show’s characters came back to the surface. I’m talking about Agent Lundy and Detective Quinn, two of the lesser-known and relatively newer characters on the show. There’s something about each of these guys that I’ve had a funny feeling about all along … and not a funny-in-the-pants kinda way, Masuka.

Let’s start with Lundy. This guy is (well, was) a renown serial killer hunter for the FBI. He’s got an impressive resume, having helped track down and bring in numerous high-profile suspects. And this guy does his homework, as we saw from his Miami hotel room and from the piles of notebooks, files and tapes that Dexter snagged.

What’s bugged me about Lundy was that, for being such a rock star of an agent, he seemingly didn’t smell something being off about Dexter. And that’s where my theory comes in: I believe Lundy knew all along — or very early on — that Dexter is a serial killer.

So, why not bring Dexter in? Well, what better source of the inner-workings of the mind of a serial killer is there than Dexter, a man who has a very specific code to follow that doesn’t include federal agents? Dexter’s clearly very good at what he does, having done this for many years without being caught. Lundy recognized this and saw the benefit of not arresting him or rousing suspicion, so he kept Dexter on a somewhat tight leash without him knowing it. That may have included his romance with Dexter’s sister, Deb. Could it be that his relationship with her was only about keeping close with Dexter?

Let’s take the Lundy theory a step further. Deb is still digging into Harry’s background. In her investigation she could find that her father had a dear old friend he shared information and intel with by the name of … Agent Lundy. If that happens, imagine flashbacks to Harry confiding in Lundy about who Dexter really is. If not via Deb’s investigation, we could learn — from Lundy’s pile of files that Dexter took — that he knew Dexter’s secret. No doubt that would scare the crap out of Dex, knowing he can be found out so easily … that is, unless he finds out later that Lundy knew through Harry. If that’s the case, who else did Harry tell?

Alright, now let’s move on to Quinn. This is actually my wife Deb’s theory, though this time I agree with her 100%. Like Lundy, Quinn’s presence has bugged me. He doesn’t seem to “belong” on the show somehow, and I could never place it. In fact, last season I almost thought he’d turn out to be the Tree Trimmer killer. This season, though, it’s looking like his true nature is peeking out, and I was right all along about him.

Earlier in the season, Dexter caught Quinn pocketing money from a victim’s dresser. Quinn noticed Dexter eying him and tried to kiss up to him, in case he was thinking of mouthing off about it. Then … nothing. What happened to that storyline? It all but disappeared, and that’s not like this show to do that.

Now look at what’s happened with Quinn since he last tried to befriend Dexter. He’s messing around with a reporter, feeding her info, seemingly without realizing it. And because of info that was fed to her via Batista, suspects were taken in, and Quinn went about “thanking” her for planting the story. All the while, the department was hunting down the person responsible for shooting Lundy and Deb. Quinn should be thankful, because now the heat’s off him, as he was the one who gunned the two down.

Yes, I believe Quinn was at least the one responsible for gunning down Lundy and Deb and possibly others related to the vacation murders. The theft of Lundy’s wallet and watch, the fact he didn’t finish off Deb … it’s starting to add up. Eventually Dexter will confront Trinity and find out he was not responsible for shooting Deb and Lundy, and then it’s just a matter of Quinn making some sort of slip-up, like wearing Lundy’s watch.

Even if those theories don’t hold water, there’s something more to these two guys. It’s only a matter of time before we’ll find out what it is.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Ratings Clack – Smallville continues to defy the odds

Brett Love — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:00:19 +0000

We do often get caught up in the big numbers from the big networks. It is, after all, hard to overlook the fact that NCIS is still growing its audience in the 7th season. There are still some very interesting stories happening on the little network, CW. When it was announced that Vampire Diaries would be paired with Supernatural, while Smallville was shuffled off to Friday, many people expected that was the end.

The show wouldn’t be able to come back from a year grinding away on Friday nights. After a few weeks looking at the numbers though, that’s not the case at all. Clark and the gang can celebrate good times, despite taking a hit from the move. In fact, this week Smallville topped new episodes of One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl, 90210, and Melrose Place. It’s far from done. Elsewhere, we had our first sizable crop of repeats this week, which brought some interesting results.

CW – With Smallville getting the lead, we’ll start with CW this week. The week got off to a slow start with One Tree Hill (2.21m/1) and Gossip Girl (1.98m/1.1) both down. Things picked up, if you can call it that, on Tuesday with 90210 (2.25m/1.1) remaining steady and Melrose Place (1.5m/.7) gaining in viewers. Next Top Model (2.99m/1.4) was steady as well. Vampire Diaries (2.27m/.9) and Supernatural (1.83m/.8) were repeats, but it is worth noting given that the Vampire Diaries repeat had more viewers than all of the Monday and Tuesday originals. Smallville (2.52m/1.1) closed out the week with the best performance for a scripted show on the network, and also managed to finish tied for third in the demo on the night.

ABC – It was something of an uneventful week for the network. Sunday’s performance was steady with Extreme Makeover (10.33m/3), Desperate Housewives (13.68m/4.6), and Brothers & Sisters (9.72m/3.2). Likewise, Monday finished very much like the previous week with Dancing With The Stars (16.82m/3.6) and Castle (9.69m/2.4). It is worth noting that the Castle numbers have been good enough that the network has picked up the back 9.

Things started to change on Tuesday, as Shark Tank (5.92m/1.8) and DWTS Results (14.92m/3.4) both saw gains. Unfortunately, that didn’t do anything for The Forgotten (7.3m/1.9), which slipped to the lowest numbers of the season. Those 10PM struggles were repeated on Wednesday, with Eastwick (4.78m/1.6) also finding new lows. That came on the heels of a night of comedy that was down across the board with Hank (5.78m/1.5), The Middle (6.53m/2), Modern Family (8.66m/3.4), and Cougar Town (7.31m/3.1). Things really don’t look good for Hank.

There were more changes on Thursday, although they really weren’t that surprising. FlashForward (9.87m/3.1) gained in viewers while holding steady in the demo. Grey’s Anatomy (15.06m/5.3), on the other hand, posted big week-to-week gains. Of course, that was against a repeat CSI. Surprisingly though, it didn’t translate into gains for Private Practice (9.93m/3.7). The show was down without the crossover element, despite facing a repeat Mentalist. Friday, Supernanny (4.7m/1.1) returned above the year ago premiere, and Ugly Betty (4.55m/1.2) limped to a third place finish in the hour.

CBS - The week started off with shenanigans as the football overrun bumped Cold Case for the night. Amazing Race (10.92m/3.3) and Three Rivers (7.38m/1.9) didn’t see any benefit from that. Monday was mostly par for the course, with one notable exception. Accidentally On Purpose (8.25m/3.3) actually beat How I Met Your Mother (8.07m/3.4) in viewers. Did anyone see that coming? Later, the duo of 2 ½ Men (14.07m/4.8) and Big Bang Theory (13.47m/5.3) continued to dominate the 9PM hour. CSI: Miami (13.16m/3.9) finished the night on a winning note.

Tuesday was up across the board, on the back of NCIS (21.25m/4.7) continuing to impress. That led to good things for NCIS:LA (16.48m/3.9) and The Good Wife (13.26m/2.8). Wednesday remained steady. Old Christine (6.58m/2) and Gary Unmarried (6.76m/2.2) seem to have fought off the ABC comedies, while Criminal Minds (14.27m/3.8) and CSI:NY (13m/3) easily win their hours. Survivor (12.9m/4) was the lone new entry on Thursday, but it is worth noting that The Mentalist (11.79m/2.8) beat CSI (10.14m/2.2) in repeats. Friday was again an easy victory for Ghost Whisperer (8.46m/2.1), Medium (8.43m/2.2), and Numb3rs (8.05m/1.8).

NBC - Overall, it was actually a good week for NBC, relatively speaking. Sunday Night Football (18.17m/7.2) continues to be huge. And Heroes (5.72m/2.5) was actually up. With Mercy (7.18m/1.9) getting a full season, things don’t look good for Trauma (5.46m/1.8). Tuesday, The Biggest Loser (9.82m/3.9) was also up. There were more gains to be had on Wednesday, as L&O: SVU (9.15m/2.8) continued to grow. There is still the very real possibility that it could compete with Criminal Minds in the demo by the end of the season.

Thursday continues to be a mixed bag. Technically, Community (5.04m/1.9) and Parks & Recreation (4.93m/2.1) had the 8PM hour up over last week. But really, if Kath & Kim are looking down at your numbers, that’s really bad. The Office (8.73m/4.4) and 30 Rock (6.84m/3.3) took advantage of the CSI vacation. Friday, Law & Order (7.17m/1.5) continued to struggle, while Dateline (7.91m/1.8) continued to make the case for canceling Southland.

Leno… didn’t have a good week.The numbers continue to shrink, slowly. Two nights below five million, and two below 1.5 in the demo. Most troubling might be the fact that despite nice gains from The Office and 30 Rock on Thursday, and facing a repeat Mentalist, Leno was actually down.

Mon – 4.74m/1.4
Tue – 5.46m/1.8
Wed – 5.14m/1.5
Thu – 4.97m/1.6
Fri – 6.15m/1.4

FOX - The week started off with one of the most interesting repeats of the week. An old Family Guy (8.13m/4.2) was stuffed in with new episodes from The Simpsons (8.69m/4.1), Cleveland (7.62m/3.8), American Dad (6.25m/3.1) but still managed to be the highest rated. Monday, being pushed back by baseball didn’t do any favors for House (11.65m/4.4) and Lie To Me (7.79m/2.9). The news was better from baseball (10.3m/3.4) on Tuesday. Wednesday, So You Think You Can Dance (6.91m/2.6) and Glee (7.15m/3.3) were steady. I’m curious to see what happens as SYTYCD gets into the competition.

Baseball (11.85m/3.7) returned Thursday, offering a boost to the usual numbers. Friday was more of the same. The only semi-surprise was that Til Death (1.97m/.7) managed to fall below 2 million viewers. Yikes. It’s pretty bad when you lose viewers from Brothers (2.35m/.8). Dollhouse (2.15m/.8) slipped again, marking its second worse performance ever.

Cable – Ryan asked for numbers from Stargate: Universe and Sanctuary last week. I don’t usually include them because unless Syfy sees fit to issue a press release over the weekend, the post is up before they come out. So, the next best thing is week old numbers. For the 10/16 broadcasts the numbers were Stargate: Universe (2.1m/.9) and Sanctuary (1.77m/.6). That same night, USA had Monk (3.98m/1) and Psych (3.68m/1.2). The interesting premiere this week was The Jeff Dunham Show (5.34m/2.2). That’s impressive, given the overwhelming hatred of the show from critics. It’s also worth noting that Sons Of Anarchy (3.7m/2) beat both Leno and The Forgotten in the demo. Other interesting cable numbers for the past week:

Monday Night Football (13.47m/5.5)
Hannah Montana (5.72m/1)
Mad Men (1.61m/.5)
Dexter (1.51m/.7)
Californication (.77m/.3)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (1.08m/.5)
Bored To Death (.66m/.3)
Project Runway (3.02m/1.3)
Real Housewives Of Atlanta (2.97m/1.6)
It’s Always Sunny (1.52m/.9)
Lincoln Heights (.92m/.2)
Greek (.68m/.3)
The Hills (1.83m/1.1)
Dirty Jobs (1.86m/.9)
Mythbusters (2.28m/1)
Top Chef (2.86m/1.5)
South Park (2.58m/1.4)
Secret Girlfriend (1.29m/.6)
Nip/Tuck (2.23m/1.2)
Ghost Hunters (3.07m/1.4)

Photo Credit: The CW

Dexter the serial killer … hunter?

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:00:55 +0000

Now here’s a role I don’t think even Dexter thought he’d be taking on in his lifetime: serial killer hunter. Alright, so we was hunting down the Ice Truck Killer in season one, but for very different reasons. Back then, the initial hunt for ITK was more for sport, as he admired his skill and didn’t have a personal stake in it (at the start, that is). This time it’s very personal. And when things get personal for Dexter, he works fast. Very fast.

Dexter has already learned that his family means more to him than he thought they ever could, and we see that very much includes his sister Deb. There was a point in the past when I’d have not put it past Dexter to kill Deb, should she find out what he really is. Now I’m certain there’s just no way he’d ever harm a hair on her head, never mind put a drop of her blood on a slide.

As I said, Dexter moves fast when he’s got a personal stake in the matter. I’m not sure about you, but the swiftness in which he works makes me damn nervous for him. Usually when someone works that fast, they make mistakes … make that critical mistakes. Case in point, Dexter handling the evidence room. He’s incredibly crafty at how he’s able to swipe Lundy’s recorder (as Rita notes later, he’s really good at lying), but in the process he got his fresh prints all over it before returning it. It was done in such a way that I’m not sure it’ll come back to haunt him later, but to me it was careless.

Seeing now who Trinity really is — that he has a family, complete with grown kids — I’m fairly confident that we’ll find he’s not Deb’s and Lundy’s shooter. It doesn’t fit his M.O., and he truly seemed surprised and possibly horrified at the news reporting Lundy’s shooting on the TV. Trinity is clearly following a ritual, as was said on the show, so making a sloppy killing like that (and not following through with killing Deb) just doesn’t fit at all.

I also don’t believe the shooter could be Anton. The way he was told about Deb sleeping with Lundy, and Anton’s reaction to it, just didn’t fit with how I’d expect him to react if he had already known about it, even if he is a good liar. I’m really pulling for the shooter to be a huge surprise, not something ho-hum like the tree trimmer killer from last season.

Other stuff:

What will Dexter do without the apartment? He needs a new headquarters, a-la Angel Investigations. His best bet is to find a place not connected to him, anyway, since any discovery of his hidden tools and trophies wouldn’t leave for much of an investigation as to who they belong to, with them in his apartment and all.
When Deb threw out the pain pills, I thought perhaps she was hooked on them at some point in the past. Could it simply be to keep herself aware of what had just happened?
Phenomenal acting by Jennifer Carpenter (Deb) when bawling her eyes out with Dexter in the parking lot. Uncomfortably realistic, even.
Will we really see Angel transferred? I’ve really dug his character this season, so that would suck if he’s out.
Vince: “If my face was all over the media for shooting a cop and a Fed … I’d be digging a fucking hole all the way to China.”
Everyone else: “…”
Vince: “No one fucking go there.”

Photo Credit: Showtime

Dexter finds something that matters more than murder

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 02:09:56 +0000

This episode marked a slew of firsts for this show, some which were pretty unexpected. The one “theme” (for lack of a better term) of this episode was one of these unexpected turns, for both the viewers and, especially, Dexter himself. Since first meeting Dexter’s girlfriend Rita in season one, a lot of viewers likely wondered how long she was going to last, and I don’t mean in the breakup sorta way. Now, over three seasons in, we see that it’s not only unlikely that Dexter would ever kill a member of his new family, but he’d go out of his way to prevent anyone from harming them.

Another first in this episode was Dexter’s choice of kill being a woman. We haven’t seen all of his kills on the show, and he has had some victims of somewhat-collateral damage from a kill or two we’ve seen in the past, but this is the first time I can recall that he actively sought out and killed a single woman, one who also fit into the Code of Harry. Incidentally, I recognized the actress right away as Christine Cox, Jen Crane from Defying Gravity.

Though not technically a “first” for the show, the most shocking item by far was how the episode ended with both Lundy and Deb shot down by an unseen shooter. Though we saw this person rifle through Lundy’s pockets for his wallet like a common mugger, it’s safe to say that it was the Trinity killer who was behind it. Every time I think Dexter will pull a fast one on us, it always winds up being the most logical and obvious explanation that’s revealed.

If I had to guess, I’d say Lundy is dead and Deb survived. When questioned, she’ll note that Lundy looked like he recognized the shooter. They’ll take Lundy’s recorder, note that he seemed to find a possible suspect earlier that day, then the hunt will be on. It will be sad, though, to see Lundy gone.

What I don’t get, though, is the Trinity Killer’s motives and methods. As I said before, it often appears he wants to be caught, but just when it appears someone might be getting close, he guns them down. Then there was the extremely odd scene in the alley, while he sought out a beat-down and cried “it’s all your fault” to the one doing the beating. It seems he’s reenacting something that happened to him as a child, probably what his own father did to him.

Now with Deb out of commission, a question that deserves further begging is what will happen to her investigation into Harry’s past? We haven’t seen much come of that lately, so will her being taken off-duty leave her with more or less time to continue her little investigation? Seems to be that she’d be a lot more preoccupied with finding her shooter rather than anything to do with her late father.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Ratings Clack – Favre and Baseball create havoc

Brett Love — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:00:43 +0000

It was a strange week for ratings. Brett Favre playing against Green Bay made for a huge Monday Night Football (21.84m/9) audience on ESPN. And then the baseball playoffs ran through the rest of the week, calling a lot of the seemingly odd drops in viewers into question. Despite that increased competition, there was some good news to be had. The Biggest Loser, Bones, The Office, Lie To Me, Castle, and The Simpsons all managed to make gains week-to-week. Dollhouse also got in the game, stopping a four episode streak of series lows. On the other side, it’s starting to look like ER took all of it’s viewers with it when it left. The premiere numbers for Three Rivers were not good, and NBC’s dueling medical dramas continue to struggle.

FOX - Animation Domination got the week off to a great start, with The Simpsons (9.38m/4.4), Cleveland (8.86m/4.4), Family Guy (9.86m/5.1), and American Dad (7.14m/3.6). Food for thought: In the demo, that makes Family Guy the #1 comedy of the week. On Monday, House (13.74m/5.4) looks to have taken a hit from football. The good news though, is that Lie To Me (8.06m/3.1) was up, despite the drop from House.

Tuesday and Wednesday were fairly steady with Hell’s Kitchen (7.43m/3.3), So You Think You Can Dance Tuesday (5.47m/2.5), SYTYCD Wednesday (6.22m/2.5), and Glee (7.28m/3.3). Thursday was another example of just how solid the Bones (10.29m/2.9) audience is. No matter the night, or the competition, it gets its numbers. And it is getting very close to passing up FlashForward in the demo as well. Unfortunately, Bones being up, and the appearance of Nimoy, didn’t help Fringe (5.83m/2.1). For now, let’s blame a special episode of The Office and see what happens next week.

Friday brought very similar results, with Brothers (2.35m/.8), Til Death (2.36m/.8), and Dollhouse (2.25m/1). If your glass is half full, those Dollhouse numbers are a win, because the streak of series lows that stretches back four episodes to last season was ended. If your glass is half empty … it was still the second lowest rated episode the series has had.

CBS - The Amazing Race (9.8m/2.8) was down to start the week, which didn’t offer much help to Three Rivers (8.97m/1.9). That’s really not good for the premiere. Cold Case (10.05m/2.2) was steady, if not impressive. Monday was down across the board with How I Met Your Mother (8.08m/3.4), Accidentally On Purpose (7.16m/2.8), 2 ½ Men (13.3m/4.4), Big Bang Theory (12.52m/4.7), and CSI: Miami (13.43m/3.9). I’m willing to chalk that up to football, but the AOP demo is something to keep an eye on.

Tuesday’s lineup, NCIS (20.7m/4.3), NCIS:LA (16.31m/3.6), and The Good Wife (13.69m/2.9) was also down every hour, but still far and away #1 for the night. There were gains on Wednesday as Old Christine (6.86m/1.9) and Gary Unmarried (6.84m/2.2) were both up. Criminal Minds (14.05m/3.6) and CSI:NY (12.43m/2.9) were both down slightly, but Criminal Minds did take back the number one spot in the demo from ABC.

Thursday was another night of decreases, with Survivor (11.69m/3.4), CSI (14.89m/3.5), and The Mentalist (14.7m/3.3) all down. On the plus side, all were the most watched programs in their slots. Friday was again a cake walk, with Ghost Whisperer (8.6m/2.1) and Medium 8.3m/1.9) up week-to-week. Numb3rs (7.13m/1.6) was slightly down in viewers, but did win the hour.

NBC – As always, Sunday Night Football (18.42m/7.4) is solid. The Biggest Loser (9.25m/3.7) also did well, gaining week-to-week and winning the 9PM hour in the demo. More good news came from the big wedding episode of The Office (9.42m/4.8). That is higher in viewers and demo than every episode from last season. Elsewhere, it was a very NBC week.

Heroes (5.46m/2.4) continues to explore new lows. And that isn’t helping Trauma (5.37m/2.7). Mercy (7.43m/1.8) is doing slightly better, but that’s still not what you would call a real success, given the weak Wednesday competition. Community (4.87m/1.9) made the big move to 8, and managed less viewers than SNL Thursday. It did, at least, provide a boost for Parks & Recreation (4.75m/2.1). Things were slightly brighter for L&O SVU (8.29m/2.6) and Law & Order (7.23m/1.5), but both are not even close to doing what they once did.

Leno? He had a tough week. The numbers continue to slowly grind down to a level, with this week finding two nights dropping below 5 million viewers. Tuesday remains his most successful night. The only nights where he isn’t last in both measures are Tuesday (2nd in demo) and Wednesday (2nd in viewers).

Monday (4.45m/1.5)
Tuesday (6.22m/2.1)
Wednesday (5.72m/1.7)
Thursday (4.84m/1.7)
Friday (5.33m/1.4)

ABC – Things got off to a nice start Sunday as Extreme Makeover (11.63m/3.4), Desperate Housewives (14.64m/5), and Brothers & Sisters (9.46m/3.2) were all up. A return to the 5s in the demo is very encouraging for Desperate Housewives. With Monday, the network started suffering many of the same drops the other networks saw. Dancing With The Stars (16.35m/3.5) was down, but still strong. On the plus side, despite that drop, Castle (9.23m/2.2) was up just a bit.

DWTS (12.42m/2.6) was down on Tuesday as well, while Shark Tank (5.15m/1.5) and The Forgotten (7.55m/1.9) both saw small viewer gains. Wednesday was one of those very curious nights, with Hank (6.45m/1.6), The Middle (6.79m/2.1), Modern Family (8.82m/3.4), Cougar Town (7.84m/3.2), and Eastwick (5.14m/1.8) all suffering large losses. We’ll have to wait for next week to see how much of that sticks. The best news there is probably for Castle, which is now well above The Forgotten and Eastwick.

Thursday remains a strong night for the network with FlashForward (9m/3), Grey’s Anatomy (14.13m/5.4), and Private Practice (9.5m/3.6). Those numbers still have FlashForward ahead of where Ugly Betty was last season, but it has now fallen to third in viewers and second in the demo. It will be interesting to see where it plateaus. Private Practice is notable because it remains ahead of The Mentalist in the demo, which is an unexpected win.

CW - One Tree Hill (2.13m/1.1), Gossip Girl (2.08m/1.1), and 90210 (2.09m/1.2) were all down in viewers this week, with 90210 gaining a tenth in demo. Melrose Place (1.6m/.9), on the other hand, was up in both measures. I believe the gains come from starting the episode with Katie Cassidy in her underthings, and look forward to the network taking that into account as they film new episodes.

With Next Top Model (3.15m/1.5), Wednesday was down just a touch in viewers, and up a whole bunch in WTF? Seriously, why is there a repeat of Melrose following the number two show on the network? The spot is open, and Smallville would obviously do better Wednesday at 9. Thursday, Vampire Diaries (3.52m/1.7) continues to lead the network, and Supernatural (2.47m/1.2) had a small drop in viewers. Friday, Smallville (2.3m/1) was down year to year, but still managed more viewers than OTH, GG, 90210, and MP.

Cable - Monday Night Football (21.84m/9) took full advantage of all of the Favre craziness, topping everything on the broadcast networks for the week in viewers and demo. Other highlights this week included the Entourage finale (2.49m/1.5), Sons Of Anarchy (3.67m/2), and Project Runway (3.22m/1.5). Also of note, the Seinfeld reunion was able to add an extra half million viewers to Curb Your Enthusiasm (1.56m/.7). In really crazy drop numbers, remember that Jon & Kate premiere with 10 million viewers? All of their shenanigans have resulted in the latest episode managing just 1.71 million. Some other cable numbers to peruse:

Army Wives (3.33m/1.1)
Drop Dead Diva (2.79m/.9)
Dexter (1.37m/.6)
Californication (.77m/.4)
South Park (2.67m/1.3)
Secret Girlfriend (1.55m/.8)
WWE RAW (4.71m/1.6)
The Ultimate Fighter (2.76m/1.6)
It’s Always Sunny (1.51m/.9)
Mad Men (1.91m/.7)
Bored To Death (1.08m/.5)
The Hills (2.3m/1.4)
The City (1.61m/.9)
Lincoln Heights (.75m/.2)
Greek (.72m/.3)
Top Chef (2.76m/1.5)
Mythbusters (1.89m/.9)
Ghost Hunters (2.74m/1.3)
Destination Truth (2.04m/1)
Sherri (.44m/.1)
Rita Rocks (.28m/.1)

Photo Credit: FOX

Dexter’s Dark Passenger will need another coat

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:00:05 +0000

From what I’ve heard and read, a lot of writers for movies and television feel that the voicever is a cheap tactic. To have to rely on putting a character’s thoughts out there verbally, rather than via visual cues or good old fashioned acting and writing, is sometimes seen as a cop out. Dexter’s a good example of when a voiceover is not only done well, but it’s essential to the story.

Case in point: Rita taking Dexter’s car keys. Dexter’s outward actions told Rita that she was right and that he felt defeated, handing the keys over because it was “the right thing to do.” Dexter’s head, however, told a different story: use this opportunity to score some points for later, when he really needed “time for himself.” This is just one example of many when the voiceover puts us in a position where we’re not just watching Dexter do what he does, we are Dexter.

Along those same lines, a great quote from Dexter’s head: “OK, if I count yesterday, this is day two of me being the best husband in the world. I can last another five days.”

About a month ago, I wrote in my preview post for this season that The Trinity Killer brought a different sort of “Dark Passenger” to Miami. Dexter makes note of that same thing in this episode, saying Trinity is “a very different monster” than he is. And so far that’s held up very true, especially from what we’ve seen of Trinity’s methods, and then from the aftermath of his killings. Trinity appears to have some sort of motive in all of this, and of course that’s the sort of thing that’s going to get him caught.

Dexter? Well, he doesn’t have a “motive” now, does he? He just feeds his Dark Passenger like some sort of parasite, though his criteria for the menu choices are vague enough that even someone like Lundy may not find that mysterious pattern that would ever lead straight to Dexter.

Something else we’ve seen of Dexter is how he admires certain things other serial killers do, starting with the Ice Truck Killer and his very neat and clean way of dealing with the bodies. Both the Ice Truck Killer and The Trinity Killer do something that Dexter would never do while following the code of Harry: they leave their kills in the open, to be found. That’s something Dexter seems to always admire from other killers, but the reason for them doing so is because, deep down, they want to be caught (as some psychoanalysts will tell you). Dexter, on the other hand, is living the Code of Harry, where the number one rule is: do not get caught. Has Dexter ever hinted at a deep-down desire to be caught and healed from his macabre urges? Maybe a tiny bit last season, but I don’t sense a deep down desire for it, do you?

This desire for being caught comes back to the Trinity Killer’s latest kill. In this episode we saw him leave a line of what appeared to be ashes from a dead person, which he keeps in a jar in his home. Who was that? Why leave something like that behind if it’s not some sort of calling card to help the authorities find him? It could be used to throw the scent off his tracks, but that’s unlikely here. I am curious how Miami Metro is going to find that piece of evidence, though, before rain washes it away.

Lastly, the metaphor for the painted door could be a sign of what’s to come with Rita. As the ghost of Harry said, Dexter can throw all the paint he can over the nastiness underneath, but in the end that nastiness is going to bleed through and show the world what’s really underneath.

I know; I’m deep.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Curb Your Enthusiasm; Dexter; Entourage – In that order

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:30:41 +0000

I had a tough time figuring out how I’d order my Sunday night’s lineup, and there’s a very close fourth show that I struggled with adding over Entourage.

Curb Your Enthusiasm — The Seinfeld moments alone give this episode my number one pick of the night. I caught this episode a couple of weeks ago, but still the awesomely funny digs at the lackluster Seinfeld finale won’t soon be forgotten. Most weeks, Curb doesn’t do much in the way of being remarkable, but making a reunion episode about making a reunion episode was brilliant.

Dexter — Didn’t get my top pick this week because of that great Curb episode, and also because it dealt so much with Dexter trying to find a missing bag of body parts. Not that that was bad, but it didn’t make the episode stand out to me. I saw the episode that follows this one already, and so far I expect it to make it into the top two next week.

Entourage — This almost didn’t make my list this week, but it had two things that brought it in for me: Matt Damon and Ari’s paintball rampage. Best scene from the episode:

Talent agent at Ari’s old (and now new) firm: “I … I represent Jon & Kate Plus 8!”
Ari’s paintball gun: *pow pow pow pow pow pow*

I’m just so sick of watching E’s relationships and especially Turtle, who continues to be a wanted man by the ladies and somehow was able to skip out of taking college classes to take a trip to New Zealand (and then, screw it, Rome). Ari saved the episode, once again.

The show that almost replaced Entourage in this list was the season premiere of The Next Iron Chef. Really well done and makes Hell’s Kitchen look like the dog crap that Gordon Ramsay always says he’s eating week after week. This is clearly a serious cooking show, and with real gourmet chefs of note. No screaming and no smoke breaks here. I’m on for watching the rest.

Photo Credit: HBO

Dexter – Anyone else see Rita as a victim some day?

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 03:02:46 +0000

Now that Dexter has a wife (still a hard concept to grasp), said-wife Rita has taken a larger role in the season, whereas previous seasons she was featured as a mere convenience for Dexter when he wanted to “appear normal.” With that is Rita rather forcibly making herself part of Dexter’s life. Her going out of her way appear at Dexter’s workplace, baby in-tow, shows she’s going to be more of a distraction to Dex that he bargained for.

Last week left us with quite the cliffhanger, with us wondering how the hell Dexter could possibly get away with the law not finding body parts in the back of his car. The writers handled this aspect of the season brilliantly, leaving us hanging in the premiere and throughout the second episode, then cleaning it all up and leaving us with little to no questions as to whether he’ll have some aspect of it pop up later to haunt him.

Something I’m not quite sure about so far is Quinn’s attempts at buttering up Dexter. It appears that there’s no good conclusion to come from that … and by “no good” I mean for either Dexter or Quinn, but most likely the latter. What I really hope is that we won’t wind up with yet another Doakes storyline in order to clean up a mess from another Miami cop finding out about Dexter. I’m pretty confident the writers won’t go down that alley and there will be something a lot more substantial to come from it, in the end.

The Trinity killer storyline, while creepy as hell, is definitely an intriguing one. What is it that will connect back to Dexter in some way? My only gut feeling is that he’ll wind up targeting Rita or the kids, which is why I’m thinking she might be on the victim menu this season. We won’t know for sure, though, until we get a bit more info about Trinity’s past killings from Lundy.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Curb Your Enthusiasm; Dexter; Entourage – In that order

Dexter is seriously not used to a lack of sleep?

Keith McDuffee — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 03:00:40 +0000

Let me just start out by saying that I don’t feel so bad for talking about video games to my newborn son five years ago, when Dexter’s telling little Harrison about how he kills people. However, my five-year-old is now sorta crazy about video games so … what’s that tell you about Dexter’s son’s chances?

I did a post recently on this season of Dexter in general, or at least based on the first two our three episodes. However, there were a few things of note that I didn’t want to spoil then that I can discuss now. So, if you haven’t seen the episode yet, steer clear.

First of all, you’re not the only one who had to do a double-take when you saw Angel and Laguerta together. When we were watching that episode, I paused playback and looked to my wife with a WTF face. “Whoa, did I miss something from last season?” Nope. This is all new, and yes, they are together.

When we first saw Dexter bemoaning his lack of sleep to us, my first thought was that he should be used to this, right? I mean, this guy carries out his murders in the dead of night, probably spending hours of meticulous time cleaning up after himself and probably crawling back into bed at the apartment just a couple of hours before he has to head to work. What’s a night of baby crying to this guy? It’d be like hearing Bruce Wayne whine about not getting sleep after having a new baby at the Manor … only Bruce Wayne doesn’t typically kill people for pleasure, and would have his kid shuffled off into some other wing of the mansion while Alfred took the role of night nurse. I mean, who are we kidding, he’s a multi-millionaire, right?

By far the must intriguing and disturbing (REALLY disturbing) part of the episode was seeing Lithgow’s Trinity Killer take a victim. Seeing the woman lay helpless and naked in the tub next to him was really difficult to watch, even after three seasons of watching a show about bloody murder. Like I said in my previous post, The Trinity Killer has a different sort of Dark passenger with him. He shares a common trait with Dexter in that he’s a serial killer, but unlike Dexter, Mr. Trinity appears to loathe what he has to do. Dexter has never really shown remorse for his ritual, whereas Trinity scalds himself in a shower while he cries.

This is the sort of serial killer that Henry worked long and hard to make sure Dexter never became. If Dexter was left to his own urges and methods, with no guidance at all, there’s a pretty good chance he’d be looking into the mirror to see the Trinity Killer. The fact that Dexter picks the scum of the earth as Dark Passenger Chow is supposed to make him a more palatable killer to the viewer. I won’t be surprised to see head Henry make this point to Dexter some time this season. This is likely how the Trinity Killer will link back to Dexter and make it all relate to the rest of the season.

Quinn seems to be sliding into the seat that Doakes left unoccupied when it comes to giving Dex the stink-eye. Quinn is clearly not on the up and up, but that won’t stop him from giving Dexter a world of shit to deal with if he doesn’t like the way he looks at him, never mind having something on him. Doesn’t it make you nervous when someone has a problem with Dexter?

Lastly, speaking of coming down on Dexter, his own sister (who I try hard to forget is actually the actor’s wife) is hot on the trail of finding out who Dexter’s real family is and, most likely, that he and the Ice Truck Killer have a lot in common.

Photo Credit: Showtime

John Lithgow brings a different dark passenger to Dexter’s Miami

Keith McDuffee — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:00:44 +0000

I missed out on this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, but I did witness the big presence made by Showtime’s Dexter in 2008 and remember feeling it felt sort of out of place in a convention that’s usually just about science fiction, fantasy and general geekery. Apparently it made enough splash then to have the show return to SDCC’09, as it was there again in full force, this time promoting this upcoming season and, in particular, the role played by guest star John Lithgow.

We got a chance to take a look at the first handful of episodes of Dexter’s fourth season, and let me tell you, the first episode (hell, the first scene) alone is enough to tell you that Lithgow’s Walter Simmons carries a much different sort of dark passenger than Dexter does.

For anyone who’s teetered on the edge of the creepiness factor of Dexter, let me warn you that what Dexter does and how he carries it out is going to seem tame to what Simmons — the “Trinity Killer” — does, how he does it and how he later reacts to it, if that’s even possible to imagine. Simmons is a long-time serial killer, evading capture (and identity) for over 30 years, though his motivation for doing so appears to be much different than Dexter’s. By motivation I don’t mean how Dexter kills bad guys and Simmons kills innocents. I mean how Dexter does what he does to squelch his personal “dark passenger” and, after he kills, he feels better about it. Simmons seems awfully bothered by what he’s doing and has a ritual that’s more sick and twisted than methodical.

It’s not clear yet how Simmons and Dexter will clash this season, though Dexter does have a very active role in tracking him down. It remains to be seen, though, whether Dexter will have an appreciation for Simmons’s work like he did with his late brother — the “Ice Truck Killer” — or if this sort of monster is someone even Dexter can’t relate to.

Some other points from the season premiere, without getting too spoilery:

There’s a surprise hook-up within Miami Metro. I honestly thought it was a dream sequence when I first saw it, because I didn’t see it coming at all.
Keith Carradine’s Special Agent Lundy is back for what appears to be quite a long spell, perhaps for the entire season. This is, of course, making more than one Morgan uneasy.
We get to see way too much Lithgow ass.
Dexter’s a new daddy with a new house and new neighbors. And with being a new daddy, I whole-heartedly sympathize with his lack of sleep issues. The final scene of the second episode is simply brutal to watch.
Quinn seems to be taking on a larger role this season and his relationship with Dexter (or lack thereof) is going to be interesting to watch.
Deb left off last season digging into father Harry’s past. Expect to see more of that for the entire season.
Vince … is Vince.

Dexter’s fourth season premieres September 27 on Showtime.

Photo Credit: Showtime

Dexter season three DVD – What you get

Keith McDuffee — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:00:29 +0000

The third season of Dexter was released on DVD late last month, and I got a chance to take a look at it. This release actually comes at a very good time, as the fourth season doesn’t start until September 27, giving anyone plenty of time to catch up who hasn’t done so already.

When you think about it, if you’re paying for a cable network just for one show, like Dexter, your money’s probably better spent waiting for the show on DVD and then having it to own. But then there’s the whole bothersome thing called “spoilers,” and how you have to resort to living in a cave and disconnected from the Internet to avoid them.

What’s strange about this DVD set is how the special features are delivered, though. There aren’t any episodes with commentary, which is a real bummer, so everything “extra” resides on the final, fourth disc, along with the season finale. The special features consist of some special offers, preview episodes of Showtime’s other shows — The Tudors and Californication — and some cast interviews. The thing is, none of these are on the actual disc!

If you’re only interested in grabbing the set for the extra features, I’m going to save you some dough, because you can access them all via a simple web link that’s provided on the disc. Nowhere does it say that anyone’s not allowed to simply share that link with friends, so here it is. What I really don’t like about this is that the interviews might go away some day, so generations who may pick up these DVDs will miss out on them, should the website go away.

Still, the set is a must have for anyone catching up and a nice-to-have for fans who’ve already seen the season.

Photo Credit: Amazon.com

Presenting CliqueClack’s guide to the 2009-10 fall season

Richard Keller — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:00:42 +0000

To subscribe to the below schedule in iCal, copy this link and paste into the ‘Subscribe…’ menu item in iCal. You can also just click it to open iCal or even click to add to your iPhone calendar. The same link will work in a Google Calendar as well! Or see the calendar as a web page (also embedded at the bottom here). The calendar will update as new shows are added/changed and with links to our reviews as we publish them.

Welcome to CliqueClack’s guide for the 2009-10 fall season! Or, in the case of NBC, The Great Experiment. Now, if you didn’t realize it already, this fall season is going to be different from past years. First, there’s no ER, which will feel a little weird. Second, Lost will be ending its run in the spring of 2010. Third, American Idol will be without Paula Abdul. And finally, Jay Leno is going to come into your homes at 10 PM each night and try to convince you that scripted programming is dead.

Once this season pans out, that may or may not be the case on the big Four and a Quarter networks. With so many viewers moving to other venues of original, scripted programming like cable and the Internet, the networks are fighting for life … again. Well, NBC and ABC probably are: CBS and FOX are doing okay for the time being. So, the big question is whether or not they can come back with ambitious programs like Flash Forward, comedies like Hank and The Middle, which feature known stars, remakes like Parenthood and Melrose Place, and Chevy Chase?

Only time and ratings will tell. In the meantime, CliqueClack TV is here to present you with the most comprehensive premiere schedule on the Internet. Something that you will come back to time and time again to peruse in order to plan your day. Just be aware that dates and times of these premieres may change at the whim of a network executive with too much gas. Now, without further typing…

Guide Notes:

New series premieres in bold italic

* – denotes new time/day

? – asks why the f%*&k this show is still on the air

September

To Be Determined

3:00 and 4:00 The Tyra Banks Show(CW) – Season 4 premiere. First on CW. Airdate to be determined.

Monday, September 7th

Dinosaur Train (PBS) – Check local listings for times.

Electric Company (PBS) – Check local listings for times.

10:00 Durham County (ION) – The network’s first original drama

Tuesday, September 8th

8:00 90210 (CW) – Season 2 premiere

9:00 Melrose Place (CW) – Coming next season, remakes of Booker and The Heights.

10:00 Sons of Anarchy (FX) – Season 2 premiere

Wednesday, September 9th

8:00 America’s Next Top Model (CW) – Season 13 premiere

8:00 So You Think You Can Dance (FOX) - Season 6 premiere

9:00 Glee (FOX) - A feel-good show on FOX? Nah, can’t be! (here’s our preview of Glee’s return)

9:00 Inside the NFL (Showtime)

10:00 Destination Truth (SyFy) – Season 3 premiere

Thursday, September 10th

8:00 The Vampire Diaries (CW)

9:00 Supernatural (CW) – Season 5 premiere

Friday, September 11th

10:00 20/20 (ABC)

Saturday, September 12th

8:00 COPS (FOX) – Season 20 premiere. Coming up this season — the 700th episode!

9:00 Robin Hood (BBC America) – Season 2 premiere

9:00 America’s Most Wanted (FOX) – Season 23 premiere

Sunday, September 13th

7:00 Football Night in America (NBC)

8:15 NBC Sunday Night Football (NBC)

Monday, September 14th

Dr. Phil (Syndicated) – Season 8 premiere. Check local listings for times.

Oprah (Syndicated) – Season 24 premiere. Check local listing for times.

The Rachel Ray Show (Syndicated) – Check local listings for times.

8:00 Lincoln Heights (ABC Family) – Season 4 premiere

8:00 One Tree Hill (CW) – Season 7 premiere

9:00 Gossip Girl (CW) – Season 3 premiere

10:00 The Jay Leno Show (NBC) – The start of The Great Experiment. Guest stars for the premiere include Jay Z, Kayne West, Rhianna, and Jerry Seinfeld.

Tuesday, September 15th

8:00 The Biggest Loser (NBC) – Weekly shows from 8-10 pm, followed by Jay Leno’s show. Yes, this is the new face of NBC.

Wednesday, September 16th

9:00 The Beautiful Life (CW)

Thursday, September 17th

8:00 Survivor: Samoa (CBS) – 19th season premiere

8:00 Bones (FOX) – Season five premiere. Here’s hoping Booth recovers from his coma.

9:30 Thursday Night Live (NBC) – Season 2 premiere. Not too sure what they’re going to talk about now that the election is over.

8:30 Parks and Recreation (NBC) – Season 2 premiere

9:00 Fringe* (FOX) – Season 2 premiere

9:00 The Office (NBC) – Season 6 premiere.

9:30 Community (NBC) – Chevy Chase returns to TV, and not in a talk show format! (Here’s a Guest Clack post about the show)

10:00 It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX) – Season 5 premiere

Friday, September 18th

10:00 Crash (STARZ) – Season 2 premiere

Sunday, September 20th

9:00 Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) – Season 7 premiere

10:45 Bored to Death (HBO)

Monday, September 21st

8:00 Dancing With the Stars (ABC) – Season 9 premiere. And … Donny Osmond!

8:00 How I Met Your Mother* (CBS) – Season … wait for it … 5 premiere.

8:00 House (FOX) – Season 6 premiere. Will House get out of the looney bin? Only a two-hour episode will tell.

8:00 Heroes (NBC) – Two-hour, season 4 premiere

8:30 Accidentally on Purpose (CBS)

9:00 Two and a Half Men (CBS) – Season 7 premiere

9:30 Big Bang Theory* (CBS) – Season 3 premiere

10:00 Castle (ABC) – Season 2 premiere

10:00 CSI: Miami (CBS) – Season 8 premiere

10:00 Madventures (Travel) – An actual travel show on the Travel Channel? Get out!

Tuesday, September 22nd

8:00 NCIS (CBS) – Season 7 premiere

9:00 NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS)

10:00 The Forgotten (ABC)

10:00 The Good Wife (CBS) – The return of Julianna Margulies

10:00 The Naughty Kitchen With Chef Blythe Beck (Oxygen) – And you can all get your minds out of the gutter with that title.

Wednesday, September 23rd

8:00 The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS) – Season 5 premiere

8:00 Mercy (NBC) – It might be me, but this show really belongs on Lifetime. (Here’s our preview post on the show.)

8:30 Gary Unmarried (CBS) – Season 2 premiere. Hey, the show isn’t half-bad!

9:00 Criminal Minds (CBS) – Season 5 premiere

9:00 Law & Order: SVU* (NBC) – Season 11 premiere.

9:00 Modern Family (ABC) – All-star cast, including Ed O’Neil and Julie Bowen, give this comedy a chance (Check out our preview post on this show.)

9:30 Cougar Town (ABC) – Courtney Cox’s new comedy. (Check out our preview post on this show.)

10:00 Eastwick (ABC) (Check out our post about this show.)

10:00 CSI: NY (CBS) – Season 6 premiere

Thursday, September 24th

8:00 Flash Forward (ABC) – Another series full of mysteries. How long before people’s heads begin to explode? (Check out our review of the pilot script and preview of the pilot episode.)

9:00 Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) – Season 6 premiere

9:00 CSI (CBS) – Season 10 premiere

10:00 The Mentalist* (CBS) – Season 2 premiere

Friday, September 25th

8:00 Ghost Whisperer (CBS) – Season 5 premiere

8:00 Smallville (CW) – Season 9 premiere

8:00 Brothers (FOX) – One-hour series premiere.

8:00 Law & Order* (NBC) – Season 20(!) premiere. And, maybe its last.

9:00 Medium (CBS) – Season 6 premiere (1st season premiere on CBS)

9:00 Dollhouse (FOX) – Season 2 premiere. Yes, I’m being serious!

10:00 Numb3rs (CBS) – Season 6 premiere

Saturday, September 26th

10:00 48 Hours Mystery (CBS) – Because there isn’t enough crime on the CBS schedule.

11:30 Saturday Night Live (NBC) – Season 35, which may have been about 15 seasons too long. Allegedly, Megan Fox will be host. So, if the show sucks, at least we can look (leer) admiringly at her.

Sunday, September 27th

7:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC) – Season 10 premiere. Prepare for tissue stocks to skyrocket.

7:00 60 Minutes (CBS) – The whopping 42nd season premiere.

8:00 The Amazing Race (CBS) – 15th season premiere

8:00 The Simpsons (FOX) – The big 2-0 for this long-running animated comedy.

8:30 The Cleveland Show (FOX) – After a year of promotion this show finally gets its chance.

9:00 Desperate Housewives (ABC) – Season 6 premiere

9:00 Family Guy (FOX) – Season 8 premiere, which is supposed to be their Empire Strikes Back parody. But, it’s only a half hour. Hmm…

9:00 Dexter (Showtime) – Season 4 premiere.

9:30 American Dad (FOX) – This fifth season(!) premiere ends the first week of “Seth Sunday” on FOX.

10:00 Brothers & Sisters (ABC) – Season 4 premiere

10:00 Cold Case (CBS) – Season 7 premiere

10:00 Californication (Showtime) – Season 3 premiere

Monday, September 28th

8:00 Lie to Me* (FOX) – Season two premiere

9:00 Trauma (NBC) – ER with more explosions. (Here’s our preview post on the show.)

Tuesday, September 29th

8:00 Shark Tank (ABC) – The press release says “in-season premiere,” which means it’s either a continuation of the summer run or the beginning of season two.

9:00 Dancing With the Stars the Results Show (ABC)

10:00 The Hills (MTV) – Season 5 premiere

Wednesday, September 30th

8:00 Hank (ABC) – Kelsey Grammer’s new sitcom

8:30 The Middle (ABC) – Patricia Heaton’s new comedy

October

To Be Determined

3:00 Let’s Make a Deal (CBS) – Hosted by Wayne Brady

Thursday, October 1st

10:00 Private Practice (ABC) – Season 3 premiere

Friday, October 2nd

8:00 Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Cartoon) – Season 2 premiere

8:30 ‘Til Death* (FOX) – Season 4 premiere. Though, I have a feeling they’ll be burning off a number of season three episodes as well.

9:00 Stargate Universe (SyFy) – Eh, I don’t know about this one.

Sunday, October 4th

7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC) – Holy frak! This is the show’s 20th season. I wonder if Bob Saget will make a cameo.

9:00 Three Rivers (CBS) – The return of Alex O’Loughlin

9:00 The Next Iron Chef (Food)

Monday, October 5th

7:00 Sherri (Lifetime)

7:30 Rita Rocks (Lifetime) – Season two premiere

Wednesday, October 6th

9:00 Scare Tactics (SyFy) – Season 2 premiere

Thursday, October 7th

10:00 South Park (Comedy Central) – Season 13 premiere

Friday, October 8th

10:00 TOSH.0 (Comedy Central) – New episodes from this summer’s premiere.

Friday, October 9th

10:00 Sanctuary (SyFy) – Season 2 premiere

Monday, October 13th

10:00 Disaster House (DIY) – Houses are wrecked to show the wear and tear that are inflicted upon them over the years. Obviously small children that are full of sugar are involved.

Wednesday, October 14th

10:00 Nip/Tuck (FX) – Season 6 premiere

Thursday, October 15th

9:30 30 Rock (NBC) – Season 4 premiere. And you thought Studio 60 would have been the show that came out the winner.

Friday, October 16th

8:00 Supernanny (ABC) – Oy!

8:00 Ugly Betty* (ABC) – Two-hour, season 4 premiere

Sunday, October 18th

8:00 Occupation (BBC America) – American release

11:00 The Venture Bros. (Cartoon) – Season premiere

Friday, October 23rd

9:00 Southland* (NBC) – Season 2 premiere.

10:00 White Collar (USA Network) – Tiffany Theisen!

Wednesday, October 28th

Friday Night Lights (DirecTV) – Season 4 premiere

November

Tuesday, November 3rd

8:00 V (ABC) – Yet another remake on the fall schedule (Here’s our preview post about the show.)

Saturday, November 7th

11:00 The Wanda Sykes Show (FOX)

Monday, November 9th

11:00 Lopez Tonight (TBS) – Another weeknight talkshow

Midseason Premieres

24 (FOX)
American Idol (FOX) – The Paula Abdul-less version
Better off Ted (ABC)
Blonde Charity Mafia (CW)
Caprica(SyFy)
Chuck (NBC) – Yeah!
Day One (NBC)
Human Target (FOX)
Lost (ABC) – Last. Season. Ever!
Life Unexpected (CW)
Parenthood (NBC)
Scrubs (ABC) – Or, Scrubs 2.0

Photo Credit: ABC

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Presenting CliqueClack’s guide to the 2009-10 fall season

September

October

November

Midseason Premieres

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