With eight seasons under the Scrubs belt, there’s no real shortage of material for the show to air in syndication daily. Over 160 episodes, in fact. You can now catch Scrubs five times a week. Visit www.watchscrubs.com for your local tune in time.

In honor of all this, we’ve got a very cool grand prize for one random commenter to this post (and four runner-up prizes)!

One commenter to this post will be randomly selected to receive a $100 Visa Cash Card (because “cash can cure anything.” Get it?!? Sigh….)

Four runners up will receive a prize package that includes a Scrubs-branded hat, t-shirt, pen and clipboard.

In case you didn’t know, Scrubs is an Emmy & Peabody Award winner; series star Zach Braff has received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series and three Golden Globe nominations for his portrayal of J.D. You can now tune into Scrubs every weeknight.

Just leave the comment by Tuesday, September 22, at 5 PM ET. We’ll pick four winners completely at random and alert the winners after the giveaway ends. Only one entry per person, and you must have a valid U.S.-based mailing address. Not following these guidelines voids your entry. Good luck!

Other posts

• Castle needs to have weekly poker games
• Richard Castle: Author. Lover. Poker player. Crime fighter. Browncoat?
• The appeal of Biggest Loser – Guest Clack

Holy smokes, there are a ton of DVDs being released today. If you can’t find something you like in this group … well, you have oddly specific tastes. The biggies this week include Californication, Life, House, Lie To Me, NCIS, Smallville, One Tree Hill, Samantha Who?, and Scrubs. That’s just to get started, though. You’ll also find thirtysomething, Wiseguy, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, The Untouchables, and a trio of History Channel favorites. My pick of the week? The complete series of Wanted: Dead Or Alive. McQueen, man. The full list is after the jump.

Californication: The Complete Second Season Shows that air on the pay channels enjoy a lot of freedoms that their peers on the regular channels don’t. And no show takes more advantage of those freedoms than Californication. Not that they use it just because they can. There is comedy at the root of all that blue language and all those naked bodies. Okay, maybe not all the naked bodies, but some of them, for sure. The show is about David Duchovny’s Hank Moody, but the real reason to watch season two is Callum Keith Rennie as Lew Ashby. He steals the show on a number of occasions. Check out our giveaway for two copies of this set.

Life: Season 2 Life is on my list as one of the shows that got away. It really was better than the ratings ever suggested. NBC, to their credit, took a chance on this second season, even though the prospects for success were questionable, at best. The cancellation was unfortunate, but look on the bright side — we did get two seasons of a very good cop show. Crews and Reese were a great team. And I even started to warm up to Tidwell, once they washed the axle grease out of his hair.

thirtysomething: The Complete First Season There is an interesting hole in the TV on DVD releases. Unlike today, where a DVD set is almost a given, there are a lot of shows from the late 80s and early 90s where home video was never in the plans. Unfortunately, it’s taking a long time to get through the backlog. They are coming though, and thirtysomething is one that many have been waiting for. The New York Times once called it, “as close to the level of an art form as weekly television ever gets.” That may be going a little far, but if you haven’t seen it, it’s a great piece of television history, well worth your time.

• Wanted: Dead or Alive:  The Complete Series – I’ve never seen this, but it’s the deal of the week. Steve McQueen as Bounty Hunter Josh Randall, also starring Michael Landon, James Coburn, Deforest Kelly, and Warren Oates. 11 disks, 2,400 minutes, $22. You can’t beat that.
• House: Season 5 – Dr. House, raisin’ hell like the class when the lunch bell rings.
• Lie to Me: Season 1 (Blu-ray) – Following House in the DVD list, as it will in the new fall schedule.
• NCIS: The Complete 6th Season – Gibbs keeps going, and going, with no end in sight. The 6th season actually saw ratings increases.
• Wiseguy: The Complete 1st Season – Like thirtysomething, another 80s classic that is overdue for the DVD treatment.
• Batman: The Brave and the Bold: Volume 1 – Four episodes from the first season find Batman teaming up with Blue Beetle, Plastic Man, Aquaman, and Red Tornado.
• Smallville: The Complete 8th Season (Blu-ray) – Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Aquaman rescue Clark. World saving ensues.
• One Tree Hill: The Complete 6th Season – I’ve totally lost track of the kids in Tree Hill at this point.
• Samantha Who?: The Complete 2nd Season – Things didn’t end well in the ratings, but Christina Applegate shines as Samantha. We’ll have a review of this series up soon.
• Scrubs: The Complete 8th Season – Come for J.D. and Turk, stay for Denise the Intern. This is the set that includes the DVD previewing ABC’s hit shows.
• Booker: Collector’s Edition – The failed spinoff from 21 Jump Street. In collector form.
• MonsterQuest: Season 3, Part 1 – “The world’s most persistent and compelling monster stories, from MegaJaws to the Swamp Beast of Boggy Creek, the Lake Demon to the Abominable Snowman.”
• Battle 360: Bloody Battle of Guadalcanal – The History Channel always gets me with this stuff.
• Battles BC: The Complete Season 1 – Ditto.
• Suite Life on Deck: Anchors Away – Hannah Montana wishes she had the staying power of Zach and Cody.
• Dungeons & Dragons: The Animated Series – The complete series, starring Willie Ames and Adam Rich. Really.
• The Untouchables: Season 3, Volume 1 – Robert Stack as Eliot Ness. Classic.
• How the Earth Was Made: The Series – Another solid entry from History Channel.
• Sex, God, Rock ‘n Roll: Season 1 – Stuart David blends edgy comedy and original music. Filmed in front of a live audience in Boulder.
• Sonny with a Chance: Vol. 1 – Sonny’s Big Break – Demi Lovato in another Disney creation that I somehow missed. How do you keep up with them all? Well, DVD, I guess.
• TV Sets: Beyond The Ordinary – A collection featuring Star Trek’s “The Man Trap,” and the pilots for The 4400, Medium, and Joan of Arcadia.
• TV Sets: Crime And Punishment – This one offers Hawaii Five-O’s “Full Fathom Five,” The Streets Of San Francisco’s “Thirty Year Pin,” CSI: NY’s “Blink,” and the Dexter pilot.

Related posts

• Ratings Clack – NBC has something to cheer about…
• Ratings Clack – Heroes finishes 6th in its time slot!?
• Ratings Clack – Everybody loves a Christmas special, and Van Pelt

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

Related posts

• Ratings Clack – V gets off to a great start
• Ratings Clack – Where is FlashForward headed?
• Ratings Clack – Favre and Baseball create havoc

Within the shrinkwrap packaging of the DVD is another DVD with what ABC calls its “ABC Starter Kit.” Essentially this DVD contains what any newcomer to many of their returning hit shows would need to understand what the shows are about. In this DVD, at least, there are short videos for Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Ugly Betty, Brothers & Sisters, Desperate Housewives and Castle. There’s a bonus two-hour “event” for Brothers & Sisters included in the DVD as well as the pilot episode of Castle.

You can actually watch all of these videos already over on ABC.com, but the point of this DVD is brilliant: reel in the people who’ve followed the show over to ABC and clue them in on what they may have been missing with their other shows. Granted, a lot of these shows may not be up the alleys of many Scrubs fans, but I’ve got to give ABC credit for trying. Oh, and for not just slapping these videos right on the Scrubs DVDs themselves.

Related posts

• Scrubs season 7 on DVD – CliqueClack TV giveaway
• Adult Swim in a Box – CliqueClack Giveaway
• Battlestar Galactica: The Plan – CliqueClack Preview

• It’s steady as she goes on CBS as it presents a rerun of NCIS at 8:00 pm and Medium at 10:00. In between that rerun sandwich is a new episode of Big Brother 11. Oh, on this week’s Medium repeat, Allison has a horrific apocalyptic dream that’s followed by an earthquake. Of course, hilarity ensues.
• On the Alphabet Network (that would be ABC) there is only one repeat: the 9:30 episode of Scrubs. It’s the second part of the “Scrubs Goes to the Caribbean” episode where the Janitor and the Lady get the Married.
• The CW proudly presents a brand new repeat of 90210 at 8:00 pm which features a sweet-16 party, a hearty school rumor, and a secret. Yeah, it sounds boring; a description that Kona agreed with when the episode first aired.
• Since NBC is full of America’s Talent this week, we once again highlight a rerun of PBS’s Nova, which airs at 8:00 pm. Tonight, the long-running science programs focuses on Peter Robbins, an engineer who built his own submarine in order to look for sunken German U-boats. Hm, an underwater adventure or sweet-16 party. Decisions, decisions.

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!

Related posts

• Double your pleasure with two 90210s – Daily Rerun Roundup
• Tuesday’s lighter shade of reruns — Daily Rerun Roundup
• Six reasons The Vampire Diaries keeps me coming back for more

Folks, I know you’re starting to feel the Rerun Rundowns as July comes to an end, but I want you to hold on. Soon enough the summer will be over and Jay Leno will premiere with his live 10:00 pm show.

• An interesting night for CBS. Not because of this week’s repeat of NCIS (8:00 PM), It’s because tonight is the premiere of Medium (10:00 PM), which came over from NBC for two utility players and a draft pick to me named later. To introduce Medium, CBS is staring with the season 5 premiere.
• NBC starts its night with a repeat of last Wednesday’s America’s Got Talent, followed by Tuesday’s new episode of America’s Got Talent, which shouldn’t be confused with Wednesday night’s repeat of Tuesday night’s America’s Got Talent. At 10:00 PM the network rebroadcasts the 10th season premiere of Law & Order: SVU.
• At 9:30 PM, ABC reruns the first part of the Scrubs’ episode “My Soul on Fire.” You know, the one where Krista Miller and Sarah Chalke walk around in bikinis? So, it’s all good.
• The CW shows the “very special rerun” of 90210 (8:00 PM) where Adrianna owns up to her drug addiction. Meanwhile, Blossom contemplates changing her hat style.
• Finally, while not a repeat, ABC Family premieres Ruby & the Rockits, which stars former teen heartthrob David Cassidy. Let middle-age swooning commence.

Related posts

• Ratings Clack – Heeere’s Jay Leno
• Ratings Clack – The last summer ratings post
• Ratings Clack – True Blood can’t be stopped

• God bless CBS for keeping some scheduling normalcy with their weekly 8 pm repeat of NCIS. In this episode the team investigates a … wait for it … murder. This is not followed by The Mentalist at 9 pm. Instead, that slot is being taken by Big Brother.
• NBC (sixth place out of five networks) begins its schedule with a repeat of last Wednesday’s America’s Got Talent, followed by a new craptastic edition of the variety show. At 10 pm the network repeats the Law & Order: SVU episode guest-starring Carol Burnett. I could swear that I wrote about this repeat a few weeks ago.
• Only one rerun on ABC this week — the 9:30 broadcast of Scrubs. This episode (”My Full Moon”) featured only two of the original cast: Sarah Chalke and Donald Faison. And, according to Jason’s review, was somber, but good. I agree with Jason.
• Over at the CW (which, I believe, they are still considering a network) 90210 continues its repeat run. This week you have your typical ‘fake baby care for class assignment’ plot, your typical ‘friend makes bad choice about other friend’s out-of-control drug use’ plot, and your typical ‘high school collapses down Hellmouth’ plot. Oh, wait, that was from a different (and far more entertaining) show.

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!

Related posts

• Dull Bones and Ellen Burstyn – Daily Rerun Roundup
• Wil Wheaton guests on Criminal Minds – Daily Rerun Roundup
• Shark myths and funny phrases – Daily Rerun Roundup

• It’s Crimetime Tuesday on CBS (though, isn’t every night on CBS Crimetime?) with repeats of NCIS, The Mentalist, and 48 Hours Mystery. Antonio Sabato Jr. and Traci Scoggins guest star on NCIS.
• It’s House and Prefab House (also known as Mental) on FOX. This week’s repeat of House begins the ‘Cuddy Wants a Baby’ epic.
• Comedy returns to the ABC schedule tonight with repeats of According to Jim, Scrubs and Better off Ted. One of these shows (According to Jim) is not like the others as both Scrubs and Ted are returning in 2010.
• It’s Crimetime Tuesday on NBC with two episodes of Law & Order:SVU and a new I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, which is a crime to viewers sense of good taste.
• I’d mention the Tuesday night schedule for The CW, but the site I’m using isn’t even listing it. That says something about the network, doesn’t it?

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!

Related posts

• CBS Crimetime and FOX medtime – Daily Rerun Roundup
• Ratings Clack: John – Kate + Secret Life = big cable ratings
• Ratings Clack – Burn Notice and Royal Pains off to a good start

For most parts of my life this works just fine, but there is one thing that seems to be in a rut: my TV watching schedule. You see, I tend to watch repeats of Scrubs on Comedy Central from 7 to 8 every weeknight. This may not seem like such a big deal, and in the scheme of things it’s really not, but keep in mind that I’ve been doing this for more than a couple years now. Think about that for a minute. I think I’ve seen every single episode of Scrubs at least four or five times, save for the most recent season or two.

I could stop watching, I suppose. I mean, I like Scrubs, but I’ve never considered it to be one of the greatest shows in the world. I still enjoy the repeats, but I’m not sure if it’s about Scrubs anymore, or if it’s just become an ingrained part of my schedule. In any case, it got me thinking and wondering if I’m the only one who has a habit of watching the same show in repeats every night.

Do you watch those repeats of Friends or Seinfeld that seem to be on two or three channels at the same time? Maybe it’s one of the dramas that are rerun on TNT or USA? Before I started with the Scrubs habit, I used to watch repeats of Two and a Half Men. I look back fondly to when Angel and Buffy were rerun on cable networks in the evenings. I’m not sure why they still aren’t showing them. I would certainly welcome a daily dose of the Buffyverse. Other shows that I can remember watching in reruns before prime time include Newsradio, Saturday Night Live episodes from the 90s, and Conan O’Brien when he used to be rerun on Comedy Central (I wish they still did that).

So, what do you watch in the evenings before prime time?

Related posts

• Dull Bones and Ellen Burstyn – Daily Rerun Roundup
• Daily Rerun Roundup – Apologies in advance
• Wil Wheaton guests on Criminal Minds – Daily Rerun Roundup

Season finale season can be a lot of fun. Our favorite shows can leave us wondering “Who’s Been Hit?” Waiting for the “…dairy!” I get into the hype. Every year, I will watch finales of shows that I wouldn’t normally take the time for (Smallville, I’m looking at you). When it comes to series finales, I’ll tune in even if I’ve never watched the show (thanks, Friends …  really).

This season’s Fringe knocked it out of the park. While there was speculation that our Peter may not actually have been born in this reality, seeing the tombstone was still powerful. That scene, however, was NOT what people were talking about at the water cooler the next day. We finally meet William Bell, and the reveal that his office was in the still standing World Trade Center towers was a shocking moment. While some have argued that the scene was insensitive, I thought it was ballsy, powerful, and how a finale should be done.

We didn’t know yet if this was the last season of Scrubs, or if it would live on. Either way, I loved it. The episode was grounded in the idea that, despite major changes, the details of day to day life stay largely the same.  We learned the Janitor’s name (or did we?), and then were treated to JD’s walk down the hallway (through his past), and then his visions of the future.  Well played, Bill Lawrence. Well played.

The finale of Grey’s Anatomy was outstanding as well.  There was a tension throughout the entire episode, even though most didn’t realize it was George laying on the table (I wonder what episode of Grey’s everyone else watched. We figured it out early on that John Doe was George, and it was a great episode. I’m jealous of the people who didn’t make the connection, because I’m sure that episode was pretty darn good too).

For every outstanding season finale, though, there are ones that just don’t live up to expectations. This season’s Lost, in my eyes, doesn’t compare to the flash forward of last season, Blowing the Hatch, or “Not Penny’s Boat.” So, yes, we lost a beloved character, found out another was really dead, and a bomb went off. The game, as they say, is changed. But we don’t even have a clue as to how.  I want more.

Bones did the same thing. We’ve been building all season to Booth and Brennan, been teased with them getting …  er… “close” in the finale, only to be disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, the episode was fun. Putting the actors and recurring stars into a completely different story hearkens back to when JAG used to do it for their Christmas episodes. Unfortunately, for 42 minutes we got nothing that had any bearing on ongoing storylines. They packed a lot into that last minute, but only enough to make you wish they’d spent the whole episode telling that story.

Telling these stories well is not always about shock value.  I think its foremost important to bring ongoing storylines to a natural stopping point (not necessarily closed, but also not ignored).  Setting up the next season is important, but not necessary, but if you’re going to do it, do it right.  Half way just won’t do it.

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That’s because Scrubs will probably look somewhat different then it has over the last eight seasons. With major cast members like Zach Braff and Sarah Chalke signing on for a bunch of “transition” episodes, the focus of the show is up in the air. Some reports say the focus will be placed on the interns that were introduced in season eight while others mention a focus on one of the regular cast members as they move to a new hospital or medical school.

Should Samantha or Scrubs switch to a multi-camera format the question comes up if either will feature a laugh track or studio audience responding to the jokes. I could see it working for Samantha Who?, which has a formula that could easily switch to a standard sitcom mode (similar to what Happy Days did in its early years). However, Scrubs could never have a laugh track or audience in its current format. As seen in the season four episode, “My Life in Four Cameras,” the whole rhythm of the series would be thrown off with a bunch of titters and guffaws interrupting the pistol-fast jokes.

For that matter, I wonder if Scrubs coming back for a ninth season is a good idea at all. I think about the way that 7th Heaven was brought back after their cheesy series finale where everyone was having twins. Having that show come back for the first year of the CW, minus 75 percent of their cast, was one of the worst programming mistakes ever. Having Scrubs come back in a similar pared-down state could be more detremental for the series then just ending it where they did. I guess we’ll have to see what the finished product is in order to make that determination.

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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.

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Bob Kelso has received his last muffin and J.D has left the building. As a season finale, it was almost too much. As a series finale, this one-hour episode was excellent. As a series finale that may be a season finale which also happens to be the last episode of our principal cast member who won’t be returning in a regular capacity next season should we be coming back … whew … it was masterful!

There were so many beautiful moments in this episode, it’s hard to run down them all. J.D. was so perfect in wanting those dramatic hugs and goodbyes, because he’s always been that. And it was great that Bill Lawrence didn’t give them to him; at least not in the traditional sense. Scrubs has always been an atypical show, and that continued here. We did get the classic “lights out” sitcom ending during the episode, but the end results were disastrous.

I loved how early on we got J.D. remembering his first days at Sacred Heart, offering up a brief montage of clips from the first season; God, everyone looked so young. And as usual, the “lesson” that J.D. picked up tonight came from a tough medical case on his last day at the hospital.

It was perfect that they interspersed that moment of sobering retrospective, because Scrubs has always been about mixing the absurd with painful reality and Huntington’s is pretty damned real.

How about that Glen Matthews. For eight years he’s been a thorn in J.D.’s side over a penny. I liked how J.D. finally admitted to the penny thing that lead to the Janitor torturing him all these years, and even better that the Janitor saw him do it and even made the penny into a necklace. The Janitor has long been one of the best characters on the show just because he’s ridiculously crazy.

The ad-lib rants the Janitor goes on, as we see in the post-episode production clips often, can be just as funny as what makes it onto the show. As for that name, I’m inclined to believe that Glen Matthews is his real name. I think he and J.D. both shared a moment and a special relationship, and after eight years J.D. actually asked him what it was so he was honest. Tony was the lie he told the other guy. Of course, they could both be lies; this is the Janitor we’re talking about.

Everything from Turk’s “too early” goodbye at the beginning of the episode, to the closing video speculations about J.D. marrying and having kids with Elliot splashed across the back of the giant “Goodbye J.D.” sheet Turk hung over the hospital entrance created perfect moments.

In fact, J.D.’s final walk through the halls of Sacred Heart stayed true to form, because no one walked him out, nor were they all crowding around or hanging out windows to say goodbye (they’d already done that for Dr. Kelso), but he did have a vision of virtually everyone who mattered over eight years of Scrubs in those halls.

It was a real test of your fandom, as well as your memory, scanning through all those phantoms of J.D.’s time at the hospital. And even more poignant was that the hall was empty. It was, as Dr. Cox said at one point, “just another day” at the hospital. And in big places like that, leaving is never as special as you’d like it to be.

At least he did manage to trick a sincere sentiment out of Dr. Cox about his leaving, and Cox’s face when he realized that J.D. had heard him call him a great doctor, a great person and (even worse) his friend, was priceless. Even better was his threat to the Intern who set him up. “He gets to leave. You have to stay.” Yeah, she hadn’t thought that through. Guess who’s on Dr. Cox’s shit list if the show comes back next year.

It was also appropriate that Ted didn’t get any sort of goodbye and remained the “Awwwww man!” guy to the bitter end. He was even available for Jordan to be mean to after she struggled and said nice things to J.D.

I don’t know who all might come back for a new season of the show, but without J.D.’s narratives, it’s going to be a completely different animal than it is right now. Even if Zach Braff comes back for a few episodes, we’re still looking at more of a spin-off with the Interns than a direct continuation, unless they keep almost everyone else. I guess they could dump the internal monologues, but then it might lose a lot of its charm. Can anyone else carry that torch regularly?

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I hate when sitcoms feel like they need to change the status quo at the end of a series. I just don’t think it’s necessary, yet it seems like whenever a big sitcom says goodbye all the characters leave or split up or have some ridiculous changes happen in their lives (see, Friends, Cheers, Seinfeld, etc). I’ll give Scrubs a pass because there is still a chance that it could come back next year, so they had to work JD off the show somehow. Seriously, can’t our favorite characters just keep doing what we’ve enjoyed them doing for so long? I guess not.

This episode continued the season of changes. The Janitor is married, Ted has a girlfriend (and they’re moving in together), Dr. Cox and Turk have gotten big promotions, and JD and Elliot have gotten back together (again!). In this episode, JD decided to move closer to his son and take a job at Kim’s hospital. Whatever.

This episode does gets props from me, however, for getting the biggest laugh of the season. It may not be sophisticated, but I’m a sucker for people falling down, so when Dr. Cox attempted his back flip of excitement and did a complete face plant, I guffawed. I will definitely miss the way that Scrubs was able to mix slapstick comedy with poignant drama. This episode was light on the latter, but as a whole, the series mixed it up well.

As for Scrubs continuing without JD, I think it could work. Some of the interns that the show has been trying to push on us are actually entertaining, and I think I would watch the show if it focused on them. Let’s face facts, JD is kind of annoying and has really become a caricature of himself, which happens so often in long-running sitcoms. We should know soon enough about the fate of the show, but it seems like it might actually get renewed.

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And just like that, finale season is upon us. Over the next few weeks, all of our favorite shows will be pulling out all the stops and heading off into the summer break, with hopes of returning for another go in the fall. Some of them, no doubt, will be disappointed in that regard. Aside from the marriages, pregnancies, and lives left hanging in the balance, finales are interesting from a ratings perspective because they provide the possibilities of a numbers boost. One last data point to point to as you make the case that this show shouldn’t be canceled. NBC got the ball rolling last week as Chuck and Heroes both fired off their finale salvos. The results were something less than stellar. The news was better for Fringe, the NCIS spinoff, and the CW Thursday.

NBC - Chuck (6.19m/2.4) has really come to the forefront in the Internet TV world over the last week, so let’s begin there this week. Last week was the big season finale, and the show posted almost identical results to the week before. No finale gain for the kids down at the Buy More. Heroes (6.47m/3) found itself in a similar situation, dropping just a tenth in the demo from the previous week. Despite scattered Internet reports, Chuck’s fate remains up in the air, but some form of return is looking more and more likely. Heroes will be back for another season. Now it’s just a question of how long that season will be.

Elsewhere, the lack of a boost to Heroes didn’t do Medium (6.71m/2.2) any favors. The news was better on Tuesday, as The Biggest Loser (9.26m/3.6) continued its fantastic run, combining with L&O SVU (10.55m/3.9) to finish second in the demo. Thursday was again a disappointment. My Name Is Earl (5.16m/2.1), The Office (7.41m/3.7), and 30 Rock (5.95m/2.9) were all below their averages. Meanwhile, Parks & Recreation (5.07m/2.2) continues to drop. More troubling though, are the numbers for Southland (6.62m/2). It’s now lost over three million viewers and more than a point in the demo from the premiere on April 9th (9.72m/3.2).

ABC - The crumbling of new shows is something ABC knows all about. Desperate Housewives (13.64m/4.7), Brothers & Sisters (9.31m/3.1), and Dancing With The Stars (19.29m/4.3) got the week off to a nice start, but then the new shows started. Surviving Suburbia (8.98m/2.2) continues to drop, while Castle (8.24m/2) seems to have found its level. It would just be really nice if that level was a little higher. Probably the best news for Castle is the revelation that Cupid (5.59m/1.6) and The Unusuals (4.86m/1.5) are both struggling. If one of them is going to survive, Castle certainly has the inside track.

In happier news, Lost (9.04m/4.1) was back above 4 in the demo, and the combination of Grey’s Anatomy (14.12m/5.1) and Private Practice (9.7m/3.5) made gains on Thursday. In addition, According To Jim (3.11m/.9 – 3.56m/1) continues to punish the network for continuing to air this show. Finally, Ugly Betty (6.72m/2), while not outstanding, did offer an improvement over the recent sit-com experiment.

CBS - The week started out with another good run from the Monday comedies – Big Bang Theory (9.24m/3.4), How I Met Your Mother (8.87m/3.7), 2 ½ Men (14.16m/4.9), and Rules of Engagement (11.3m/3.9). Of note there, Rules Of Engagement has taken advantage of the post-Men slot and made a pretty good case for getting another season. The good news continued Tuesday as the backdoor pilot for the NCIS spinoff (16.7m/3.5) posted solid numbers. As good as that is, I remain skeptical about the spinoff’s prospects. That was followed by The Mentalist (17.11m/3.7) and Without A Trace (12.21m/2.5).

After a solid Wednesday, thanks to Criminal Minds (13.61m/3.3) and CSI:NY (12.5m/3.2), the puzzlement continued on Thursday with CSI (15.54m/3.7). The show now finds itself tied with The Office in the demo, with Grey’s being completely out of sight. It’s probably a very lucrative time to be William Petersen. Meanwhile, Survivor (11.73m/3.6) was up week to week. And Ghost Whisperer (9.67m/2.3), Flashpoint (9.57m/2.1), and Numb3rs (9.46m/2.2) easily took Friday night.

FOX – There was less to worry about at FOX. The week was off to a bit of a rocky start, as Sit Down, Shut Up (4.21m/1.9) dropped again, despite the cushy spot between The Simpsons (6.01m/3) and Family Guy (6.67m/3.4). That was quickly forgotten as House (11.69m/4.6) returned on Monday. That brought a little boost to 24 (10.43m/3.4). Tuesday also made for an easy win, thanks to Idol (23.26m/8.1) and Fringe (9.62m/4). Worth noting there is that while Idol was down a tenth, Fringe was up. Things weren’t so happy on Wednesday. Despite the fact that ABC, NBC, and CBS all handed the night off to Obama, Lie To Me (7.75m/2.3) couldn’t make any gains. Wednesday’s Idol (22.37m/7.7) was still number one, but I really don’t get the thinking behind not having Idol at 8.

Bones (8.94m/2.3) and Hell’s Kitchen (6.85m/2.8) remained down a bit on Thursday, but that’s nothing compared to what has become the weekly forehead slap of the FOX Friday. Prison Break (3.2m/1) and Dollhouse (3.09m/1.1) both managed small gains in viewers, while Dollhouse hit a new low for the demo. But small gains aren’t going to cut it here.

CW - The week didn’t get off to a good start. Gossip Girl (1.97m/1), One Tree Hill (2.28m/1.1), Reaper (1.77m/.7), and 90210 (1.79m/.9) were all down. The tides turned on Wednesday, as Next Top Model (4.01m/1.8) remained the highest rated show on the network. You do have to wonder why they waste that Wednesday at 9 spot on repeats, though. Thursday was also good, as Smallville (3.23m/1.4) and Supernatural (2.95m/1.3) both bounced back.

For the coming week … Monday finds Medium taking over the Heroes slot with a special two hour episode. The NCIS spinoff pilot continues on Tuesday. Scrubs lets loose with the big one hour finale on Wednesday. And Dollhouse finishes off season one (if you ignore that 13th episode) on Friday.

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Last week was a bit of an odd one for programming as the networks went a bit experimental. Over at FOX, Bones tried its third night in a week. On ABC, The Unusuals took over for Cupid and someone gave the OK for another Lost clip show.  CBS continued the shuffling of their procedurals by bumping NCIS, The Mentalist, and Criminal Minds back an hour. The results, as you might have suspected, were varied. While a lot of that was strange, the biggest surprise of the week was Thursday, which found just about everything  taking a hit in the ratings. In other news, According To Jim still stinks out loud.

ABC - With Desperate Housewives (13.85m/4.8) and Brothers & Sisters (9.46m/3.3) back with new episodes, the week got off to a great start. The good news continued on Monday as Dancing With The Stars (20.53m/4.7), Surviving Suburbia (9.87m/2.4), and Castle (8.21m/2.1) were all up in viewers, week-to-week. Although, Surviving Suburbia was down in the demo. The party ended on Tuesday.

Seriously, what the hell is with ABC and According To Jim (3.37m/1 – 3.35m/1)? I mean, I get it. Syndication money, blah, blah, blah. But come on. We have to wait until random distant Saturday in the future to get the final episodes of Pushing Daisies and Eli Stone, but According To Jim gets 8 PM on a Tuesday? With 3 million viewers? And a 1 demo? The facts are these … According To Jim sucks. Anyway … the news was better at 9, with the DWTS Results (14.73m/3.2). That led in to the special broadcast of The Unusuals (5.81m/1.5), which fell short of what Cupid has been doing there. Worse for The Unusuals, that was better than the regular installment on Wednesday (4.74m/1.4). That one certainly didn’t receive any help from another Lost clip show (6.75m/2.9), and those two episodes may have sealed the fate of the show. That’s too bad, I really like it. Earlier on Wednesday, Scrubs (4.6m/1.9) and Better Off Ted (4.19m/1.7) continued to struggle.

On a very strange Thursday where viewers just didn’t really show up, In The Motherhood and Samantha Who? were benched for a Grey’s Anatomy repeat before the regular Grey’s broadcast (13.51m/5) and Private Practice (9.08m/3.3) got the week back on track. Those numbers are oddly low for Grey’s, but as you’ll see, everyone had issues on Thursday, so we’ll need to wait and see how these numbers go.

NBC - It was another rough week for the peacock, which started off with nobody interested in Miss USA (4.99m/1.4). The Celebrity Apprentice (8.41m/3.2) is holding up, as is The Biggest Loser (9.26m/3.7), but that doesn’t really soften the blow for the weekly Monday results. Again, things didn’t look good for Chuck (6.11m/2.4) and Heroes (6.45m/3.1). Both shows remain mired in fourth place, despite the fact that Dr. House made way for Bones, and four of the five CBS shows were repeats. That means that Chuck remains on the bubble. Heroes will be back in the fall, but with a shortened season. Somewhat better, Medium (7.34m/2.5) managed to win the 10PM hour in the demo, while finishing third in viewers.

As with ABC, NBC was also oddly down on Thursday. My Name Is Earl (5.54m/2.2) was the lone exception, gaining slightly in viewers over the previous week. The rest of the shows all took a drop. Parks & Recreation (5.2m/2.3) wasn’t really a surprise. The show just isn’t very good, yet anyway. It has only been two episodes. More surprising, though, were the results for The Office (7.28m/3.8), 30 Rock (6.3m/3.1), and Southland (8.11m/2.4). It’s too early to say whether this was just a wacky Thursday, or if this is what it looks like when Southland goes up against a new Private Practice. That’s a matchup to keep an eye on, though.

CBS - I’m really not sure what the programmers at CBS are up to. For two weeks now they have been juggling things around the schedule. This week, that meant a repeat Mentalist in the CSI: Miami spot on Monday, NCIS and The Mentalist repeats both moved back an hour on Tuesday, and the new Criminal Minds (13.72m/3.5) moving to 10 on Wednesday. I can only guess that it’s all a series of tests for setting the schedule next fall. Perhaps something to do with how they plan to take advantage of NBC’s Leno shenanigans. With that in mind, it is worth noting that the Criminal Minds numbers are above what CSI: NY usually does in that spot.

Thursday brought the normal lineup, but as with the other networks, lowered numbers. Survivor (11.3m/3.5) wasn’t too far off, but CSI (14.64m/3.7) remains concerning. We’ll give a pass this week, but that demo number is one to watch. With things going the way they are, there is actually the possibility that a new CSI could finish fourth in the demo before the end of the year. That was unthinkable last fall. Friday brought the expected win for the night with new episodes of Ghost Whisperer (9.15m/2.1), Flashpoint (8.18m/1.6), and Numb3rs (8.84m/1.8).

FOX - The premiere of Sit Down, Shut Up (5.18m/2.3) made for a bit of a disappointing start to the week. Given the talent, and the cushy spot between The Simpsons (6.58m/3.1) and Family Guy (7.34m/3.8), that’s not a good number. Things were also a bit slow on Monday, with Bones (8.57m/2.5) taking over for House. I’m not going to take anything away from Bones on that one, though. That’s what happens when the network airs the show on three different nights in a week. Bones also got in on the strange Thursday with its regular episode (8.42m/2.3). That was followed by an also low Hell’s Kitchen (6.8m/3).

There was better news elsewhere, as 24 (10.34m/3.2) held up ok without Dr. House batting lead off. American Idol, of course, was an easy winner on Tuesday (23.96m/8.2) and Wednesday (23.95m/8.3). And while many still question what Fringe (9.89m/3.9) could do on its own, you can’t argue with the results it’s getting post-Idol. It leaves me very curious to see what they do with the show in the fall. The ever dwindling results of Lie To Me (7.97m/2.3) have to be giving pause to any thoughts of Fringe anchoring a night. That leaves the FOX Friday, which was a whole new kind of disaster this week. Apparently, not too many people care what ultimately happens to Lincoln and Michael on Prison Break (3.05m/1). And that led to Dollhouse (2.99m/1.2), which found a new low, despite having a very interesting episode.

CW - Gossip Girl (2.37m/1.3), One Tree Hill (2.45m/1.2), and Reaper (2.15m/.9) got the week off to what is a pretty standard start at this point. Things were a little more unusual with 90210 (1.88m/1) and Next Top Model (4.01m/1.9). 90210 was down a fair bit from the previous week, and Next Top Model actually finished second in the demo. And really, given the way that Lie To Me is going, it’s not inconceivable that the CW could actually win a night in the demo at some point. Wednesday at 8 is now the exact opposite of Monday at 8. Finally, Smallville (3.1m/1.3) and Supernatural (2.7m/1.1) wrapped up the wacky Thursday.

For the coming week, some numbers to watch … Monday brings the season finales of Chuck and Heroes. I think it’s far too late in the game to expect a huge change, but the prospect of a finale could offer boosts to both of them. Cupid returns on Tuesday, to make a case for a second season, and to possibly rule one out for The Unusuals. Keep an eye on the CSI demo Thursday, and watch what happens when Private Practice and Southland square off again. And Friday, Alan Tudyk stops by FOX to try and offer a boost to the sagging Dollhouse ratings.

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One of my favorite things about the Quotation Marks feature is that, when you look at all of these quotes from the week together in one place, it really strikes you how dirty network TV has gotten in the past several years. Whether it’s double entendres about shooting, having sex with the same girl or getting pregnant on a nature hike, primetime television isn’t for the faint of heart. Thank God for that.

Below are some of our favorite quotes from this week, and as always, feel free to post your own in the comments.

Better off Ted

Linda: “Oh my gosh, it was just so crazy. We were all playing in the mud. So I get into the shower, obviously totally nude, and guess who’s in there!”
Guard: “Who? Who?”
Linda: “My two sorority sisters. Oh my god, there were just vaginas everywhere!”

Bones

“King of the funeral!” – Jack Hodgins

Scrubs

“Sean, you and I have had sex with the same women, therefore we’re wiener cousins.” – JD

Castle

Castle: “I shot too soon.”
Beckett: “Well, we could always just cuddle, Castle.”

Harper’s Island

Richard: “How on Earth did you land her?”
Cal: “… I think it’s the accent…. I wake up every day praying that she doesn’t meet a cooler British person.”

Parks and Recreation

“Jerry’s in charge of our pre-teen nature hikes. For a while, it was a teenage nature hike,but then we changed it, because a girl got pregnant.” – Leslie

“The press is a weapon, and you can use it to kill people or eat people.” – Leslie

“The Tucker Park graffiti removal project was a great idea that just ran out of steam. We had removed five cartoon penises, not even ten percent, when we were shut down due to lack of funding. To this day, I am still haunted by those remaining penises. One penis in particular.” – Leslie

30 Rock

“You are wise, Liz Lemon, like a genetically altered shark.” – Tracey

“I am not a monster. I’m just a girl standing in front of a boy she poisoned so that this other boy would go to town on her.” – Jenna

“No, this is not Tracy Jordan. Really? I have not heard of that term before. Do you know how to get to Connecticut?” – Brian Williams

“She’s spirited. Like a show horse.” – Jewelry store clerk about Liz

“No, allergies are real. If I have a strawberry, my throat shuts up faster than a girl in math class.” – Kenneth

The Office

“Ever since I’ve gotten clean, there’s just something about fresh morning air that really makes me sick.” – Ryan

“When a child gets behind the wheel of a car and runs into a tree, you don’t blame the child; he didn’t know any better. You blame the 30-year-old woman who got in the passenger seat and said, ‘drive, kid; I trust you.’” – Pam

“I don’t care if Ryan murdered his entire family; he is like a son to me.” – Michael

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It was another up and down week for numbers, where we saw some shows rebound (Heroes, Lost), while others continue to raise eyebrows (Better Off Ted, Samantha Who?, CSI). Through it all, the most intriguing story is again the FOX Friday night. Prison Break took over where Terminator:TSCC left off, literally and figuratively. What does that mean for Dollhouse? Elsewhere, ABC has a strange mess on their hands with a handful of both comedies and dramas that are all returning mediocre numbers at best, with no clear standouts. How do you decide what to keep?

FOX - Let’s get right to the big Friday. First, what the hell was FOX thinking? Was there actually someone at the network that thought it would be a good idea to bring Prison Break back with a repeat? If so, that person should be kicked in the crotch on Monday. That repeat at 8 (2.68m/.8) was barely watched, and didn’t do any favors for the new episode at 9 (3.38m/1.2).  As to what that means for Dollhouse… I think it’s bad news. I saw some positive reaction that Prison Break fell short of the numbers Dollhouse has been delivering, but that really doesn’t mean anything. Prison Break has already been canceled. Narrowly beating it isn’t exactly a feat worth bragging about. The best thing that could have happened for Dollhouse was to see Prison Break post much better numbers than what Terminator:TSCC had been, leading to an improvement in lead in. That isn’t happening, and it doesn’t bode well for Dollhouse’s future.

Elsewhere, it was a mostly typical week for the network. House (12.19m/4.5) and 24 (10.86m/3.6) were off a bit week to week, but still solid. American Idol was the usual force on Tuesday (24.38m/8.5) and Wednesday (24.11m/8.2). And Fringe (10.15m/4) was right on pace with the return from last week.  The only real break from the norm was Bones (11.01m/3) taking over Wednesday for Lie To Me, and improving the network’s results. As always, the Bones fans will follow the show wherever it goes.

ABC - It’s a strange situation the network finds itself in. On the drama front, Castle (7.28m/1.9), Cupid (6.09m/1.7), and The Unusuals (6.01m/1.8) are all very similar. Much like the situation with the comedies, with Scrubs (5.06m/2), Better Off Ted (4.62m/1.9), In The Motherhood (4.62m/1.4), and Samantha Who? (4.84m/1.5). Nothing really stands out to be brought back next season, but it would be a surprise to see all of them canceled. Given a choice, I’d pick Castle and Better Off Ted from that list.

Elsewhere, Dancing With The Stars keeps rolling on Monday (19.46m/4.6) and Tuesday (15.24m/3.5). The second week of Surviving Suburbia (9.71m/2.6) dropped a million and a half viewers, and I’m still not sure why that one was chosen for the post-DWTS slot. Good news this week for Lost (9.23m/4), as the demo number rebounded nicely after an off week.

NBC - It was a better week for NBC, relatively speaking. Dateline (6.45m/1.6) took over for Kings on Sunday, and was an improvement. That led into Celebrity Apprentice (8.07m/3). More good news on Monday, as all three shows, Chuck (6.22m/2.3), Heroes (6.83m/3.3), and Medium (7.65m/2.7), were up for the week. Chuck remains firmly in the question mark spot. And while still a distant fourth place finish, the Heroes demo is an encouraging sign.

The Biggest Loser (9.11m/3.8) had another successful Tuesday. And after a slow opening with My Name Is Earl (5.36m/2.2) and Parks & Recreation (6.02m/2.5), The Office (8.37m/4.2), 30 Rock (7.32m/3.5), and Southland (9.61m/3) made for a pretty solid Thursday. Southland is particularly notable. It managed to retain almost all of its audience from the premiere. Finally, the debut of Kings on Saturday (2.41m/.6) went almost unnoticed.

CBS - Everything started off  business as usual for CBS this week. Amazing Race (10.57m/3.1), Cold Case (10.56m/2.5), and The Unit (9.05m/2.4) on Sunday. The comedy block, Big Bang Theory (10.06m/3.9), How I Met Your Mother (9.59m/4.1), 2 ½ Men (15.03m/5.3), Rules Of Engagement (11.6m/4) on Monday. That’s all just what you would expect. Things were a little different the rest of the week.

Tuesday brought repeats of NCIS (13.56m/2.6) and The Mentalist (12.18m/2.4) leading into a new episode of Without A Trace (13.23m/3). CSI: NY (12.14m/2.9) got the same treatment on Wednesday, as the only new episode of the night. Encouraging numbers for both of those shows, given that they had to do things mostly on their own. The real weirdness starts with Thursday. Survivor (11.64m/3.6) was fine, but CSI (15.72m/3.8) is again oddly low in the demo. It’s quite possible that the show will fall to third place in the time slot before the end of the season. Harper’s Island (9.61m/3) finished off the night, losing a good portion of the premiere audience.

CW - Another very slow week leaves not much to report. Reaper (2.05m/.9), 90210 (2.13m/1.2), and Next Top Model (3.78m/1.9) were the extent of the new programming for the week. Worth noting there is that Next Top Model finished third in the demo Wednesday at 8.

For the coming week… Bones gets its third time slot in six days on Monday (WTF?), which could offer a small boost to Chuck. On Tuesday, The Unusuals gets a shot following the DWTS Results, which doesn’t exactly speak well for Cupid’s chances. Lie To Me returns Wednesday, and tries to live up to what Bones did last week, right before Lost tries to pass off a clip show as something other than a clip show. The doctors at Grey’s return on Thursday, to try and put CSI into that third place spot. And Friday, Prison Break/Dollhouse.

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The interns were absent, but every one of our principal cast members, along with Ted and Todd as two of our favorite secondary characters, was along for the ride. The basic plot of the Janitor’s scheme to get presents leading to everyone impulsively flying away to paradise with him was so secondary to the relationship stories creator Bill Lawrence wanted to tell that it was barely mentioned. In the end, the episode was about the three major couples on the show: J.D. and Elliot, Turk and Carla, and Perry and Jordan.

You could even go so far as to say it was overly gushy as compared to other installments. I guess because things are winding down for the series, it’s time to stop throwing too many major monkey wrenches into these couplings and show how much true love there really is. We don’t have time for J.D. and Elliot to break up again, so instead let’s reaffirm their commitment and love for one another. There’s no going back now that J.D. has admitted he loves her more than Turk even!

Hell, Dr. Cox even got his wife to admit that not only does she enjoy spending time with him, but she actually loves him. Carla got all sexy for her man so that he wouldn’t have to keep seeing mermaids, and Ted gave us a rather beautiful rendition of OutKast’s “Hey Ya!” to wrap up the wedding ceremony, during which the Janitor gave a very heartfelt and nice speech.

All in all, I think this was a perfectly concocted episode, offering up some nice moments for the entire cast … well except Bob. He did nothing but sit at the bar and drink Bahama Mamas all weekend; hell the guy didn’t even make it to the wedding!

Ted had some great comedic moments with his sunscreen and super sensitivity to the sun, while Todd seemed to be discovering some deep-rooted feelings he still has for his old mentor: “Gay subtext five!”Even creator Bill Lawrence was a hoot as the wedding officiator, dogging the institution of marriage and almost giving us the Janitor’s real name.

Despite my happiness that they stopped giving us double doses of Scrubs like they were at the beginning of this season, I think I would have liked to have seen this hour all together on one night. There was a nice flow to the storylines that would have played well in that format.

I’m getting a sense of melancholy as I watch these last few episodes, knowing that this great ride is nearing the end of the tracks. Here’s hoping the last few episodes keep this great momentum straight to the final scene.

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Man … last week was just a bloodbath in the ratings. With the exception of Thursday night, it was bad news for all of the shows at the top of my list for every night. Kings on Sunday, Chuck and Heroes on Monday, Reaper on Tuesday, Better Off Ted and Lost on Wednesday, and Dollhouse on Friday. Not a lot of good to report for any of them. On a brighter note, there was good news for the returning Fringe, and the debuts of Parks & Recreation, Southland, and Harper’s Island.

NBC - Let’s rip the bandage off quickly and start with NBC. The week got off to an awful start as Kings (3.62m/1.1) hit a new low. That’s low enough that the show has now been shuffled off to Saturday to finish its run. The bad news continued on Monday. Chuck (6.09m/2.1) was actually up in viewers week-to-week, but that’s still 4th place in both categories. The news wasn’t any better for Heroes (6.11m/2.6). That’s also good for 4th place. More troubling, though, is the demo number. That’s shockingly low for Heroes. The news was better on Tuesday, with The Biggest Loser (8.09m/3.2) and SVU (9.27m/3.3).

And then it all went off the rails again on Wednesday, with the season (series?) finale of Life (4.6m/1.3). Of all the shows that are going to get the axe over the next six weeks, that’s going to be the one I miss the most. Thursday brought better numbers, although they come with some caveats. Parks & Recreation (6.77m/3) had a reasonable debut, but that was behind a one time shot of The Office at 8 (7.2m/3.3). With Earl in that spot for week two, expect a drop. A second Office episode at 9 (7.94m/3.9) was around usual levels, followed by 30 Rock (6.75m/3.1). Southland (9.72m/3.2) debuted with numbers right on pace with what ER has been doing all season, but that was a premiere, and it didn’t face a new Private Practice, so we need more data. Finally, Friday Night Lights (4.36m/1.3) finished off the season rather weakly, but it is operating on an entirely unique system, so that number is not of much consequence.

ABC - It was an interesting start to the week, with Dancing With The Stars (19.88m/4.6) leading in to Surviving Suburbia (11.25m/3). That’s a good number for Suburbia, but it is almost certainly a function of the lead in, as we’ve all learned by now from the Samantha Who? numbers. More interesting was Castle (9.03m/2.3). It held almost the same number as last week, despite the weaker lead-in. That’s good news for Castle, because the same can’t be said for Cupid (5.71m/1.6). Week two saw the demo number cut in half, and that was following the DWTS Results (14.56m/3.3).

That puts Cupid in a similar position to The Unusuals (6.83m/2.1), which also struggled. The weakness of those two shows may be the best thing that has happened to Castle. Earlier in the night, Scrubs (4.55m/1.9) and Better Off Ted (4.04m/1.7) continued to struggle. And Lost (8.57m/3.8) managed to hit an all time low in the demo. Finally, Thursday brought another drop for In The Motherhood (4.57m/1.3) and Samantha Who? (4.87m/1.4), who would, no doubt, like that cushy slot following DWTS back.

FOX - By comparison to those two, the Idol mothership had a much better week. House (13.29m/5.1) and 24 (10.96m/3.8) stood strong against DWTS and basketball to start the week. And that carried through to Tuesday with Idol (22.81m/8.1) and Fringe (9.88m/4). That was right on pace with the last Fringe in February. News was not so good Wednesday, with Lie To Me (8.56m/2.5) continuing to drop since the move of Idol to 9 (22.98m/8). I’m still not sure why the network made that move. Lie To Me would probably be doing Fringe-like numbers with the two reversed.

Thursday remains vastly improved with the combination of Bones (8.88m/2.5) and Hell’s Kitchen (7.59m/3.3). And Friday remains a trainwreck, with Terminator:TSCC (3.56m/1.3) and Dollhouse (3.56m/1.4). Both shows finished the night 4th in viewers and 3rd in the demo, behind the likes of Wife Swap, Supernanny, and Howie Do It. More troubling? Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader averaged around 5.75 million viewers and a 1.3 demo for new episodes Friday at 8. Don’t Forget The Lyrics was around 5.14 million and a 1.5 demo for new episodes at 9.

CBS - Awards and sports got the week off to a great start. Sunday’s Country Music Awards (14.77m/3.8) were an upgrade to the usual schedule. Ditto for Monday’s presentation of the NCAA Championship game (17.65m/6.3). The rest of the week was, for the most part, by the crime-filled book. NCIS (17.81m/3.6), The Mentalist (16.92m/3.6), Without A Trace (12.15m/2.7), Criminal Minds (13.61m/3.3), and CSI:NY (12.5m/3.3) were all at expected levels.

Things were a little different on Thursday. Survivor (11.32m/3.5) remains strong, but the demo weirdness continues for CSI (16.36m/3.7). Seeing CSI below a 4 is as strange as seeing Lost there, or Heroes below a 3. Did everyone not get the message that CSI had Charisma Carpenter dancing in her underthings? That fantastic sight was followed by the premiere of Harper’s Island (10.49m/2.7). That’s a good number, considering what the show is. Following CSI, it would be cause for concern if it was a regular series, but for the expanded mini, it should be fine. Finally, the network easily won all three hours Friday with Ghost Whisperer (10.23m/2.5), Flashpoint (9.72m/1.9), and Numb3rs (9.72m/2.2).

CW - It was a short week, with the entire schedule boiling down to Reaper (2.11m/.9), 90210 (1.96m/1.1), and Next Top Model (3.69m/1.7). It’s worth noting that Reaper has more viewers than 90210, despite airing against Idol, but the demo is still too low to expect a third season for the gang from the ‘Bench.

For the coming week, According To Jim returns (again?), but nobody cares about that. So, we’ll be looking to see if Heroes has hit bottom or not on Monday. Wednesday will find Bones filling in for Lie To Me, and most likely the Bones fans will follow right along. Thursday we’ll learn what an Earl lead-in means for Parks & Recreation. And Friday, Prison Break tries to right the FOX Friday ship.

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