The repetitive nature of the summer ratings have me so looking forward to the return of full schedules in the fall. Remember what that’s like? When CBS runs more than Big Brother, and The CW offers more than one burn-off episode of Easy Money. It was another week very much like so many of the previous weeks. Each of the big four networks has its summer reality tent-pole, and not a lot more. Meanwhile, over on cable, more good news for True Blood, Warehouse 13, and the Real Housewives. Read the rest of this entry »

Highlights of the Week

• This event is so epic it’s going to take all week to get through it. Straight from a smash run in the UK, the five-night Torchwood: Children of Earth event begins on Monday at 9pm and runs nightly through Friday. It will have you on the edge of your seats!
• If that’s not enough, the series that spawned Torchwood is back with a movie event. David Tennant is wrapping his run as The Doctor, so don’t miss Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead, now on BBC America. (Sun. 8pm)
• On the anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11, Discovery takes a look back with the special When We Left Earth: Apollo 11. (Mon. 10pm)
• Gordon Ramsay is back to tell potential chefs what fucking wastes of time they are on a new season of Hell’s Kitchen. (Tue. 8pm, FOX)
• Say goodbye to Samantha Who? with the last two new episodes ever. (Thu. 8pm, ABC)
• The Wanted is NBC’s new reality offering, where an elite team of specialists track down an international terrorist. How about they go after Bin Laden? (Mon. 10pm)
• Discovery is launching The Colony, a 10-part experiment that looks at what it would take to rebuild a society if everything has been destroyed. (Tue. 10pm)
• ABC News is probably going to tell us lies in Over a Barrel: The Truth About Oil, but you never know. (Wed. 10pm)
• So You Think You Can Dance celebrates 100 episodes with new performances of classic dances, past contestants and more! (Thu. 8pm, FOX)
• I don’t even need to read about this one to know how great it’s going to be. It’s a Syfy original movie on Saturday night. And it’s called Malibu Shark Attack. Bikinis. Blood. Gore. Bad effects. I’m there! (Sat. 9pm) Read the rest of this entry »

ABC

5:00p/4:00 Central

• The farmed out CW Sunday is all repeats tonight, kicking off with two 4Real installments. However, I can’t find any details as to which episodes are airing.

6:00p/5:00 Central

• The CW repeats continue with the first of two Valentine repeats on the night. Again, I’ve no idea which one this is, or any of The CW shows tonight.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• NBC kicks off another Football Night in America, while CBS’s 60 Minutes sits down with some of President-Elect Barack Obama’s closest advisors.
• But if that gets too boring, you can always switch over to ABC at 7:30p/6:30 Central and watch a 30-minute edition of America’s Funniest Home Videos.
• The CW repeats continue with In Harm’s Way. The lack of information coupled with the reported production halts really make me wonder how much longer this Sunday lineup will remain.
• FOX starts off their night with animated repeats. First up is the King of the Hill episode where Bill got diagnosed with diabets. That’s followed by The Simpsons repeat where Homer becomes a bounty hunter.

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Showtime

5:00p/4:00 Central

• At 5:30p/4:30 Central, The CW’s 4Real takes Red Hot Chili Peppers wild man Flea to Haiti to meet a rural health care worker.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• Like something out of a movie, a man pretended to be a narcotics agent, tricked local law enforcement and proceeded to make a series of illegal arrests. Find out how he did and what happens next on a new 60 Minutes on CBS.
• Or start getting psyched because the NFL is back on Sunday nights this week. Kick off your Football Night in America on NBC.
• Over on The CW, check out the very real dangers of volcanologists on a new In Harm’s Way. What could possibly be dangerous about studying volcanoes?

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ABC

We’re starting to settle into a groove with the 08/09 season now. That’s good for some shows, and rather daunting for others. That should figure in as the networks start handing out full season orders. We saw a couple of those last week (The Mentalist, Terminator:TSCC) that were at opposite ends of the spectrum. Following up on last week’s installment, I set the over/under for the Wil Wheaton Criminal Minds at 15 million, which was pretty close. The show came in with 14.71 million viewers. Excited by my Vegas like accuracy, I’ll go ahead and set the over/under for USC next weekend at 53 points. Yeah, it’s not ‘TV’, but watching the complete destruction of Husky football week after week is still more interesting than Kath & Kim.

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AMC

5:00p/4:00 Central

• The CW starts off their long farmed out Sunday night with a 4Real repeat featuring Casey Affleck. That’s followed by a new 4Real features Mos Def visiting the City of God outside Rio de Janeiro.

6:00p/5:00 Central

• Stick with The CW for a repeat performance of the series premiere of Valentine. See, apparently everybody missed it the first time around. Are you going to miss it again? It’s okay, so am I.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• CBS’s 60 Minutes explores credit default swaps, T. Boone Pickens mission to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, Greg Carr’s mission to bring more tourism to the poorest parts of Africa.
• NBC offers up Football Night in America, recapping last week’s action but won’t have NLF Sunday Night Football tonight due to the World Series. If that depresses you, you can always tune into ABC’s America’s Funniest Home Videos. Apparently shots to the crotch are still funny.
• On The CW, a new In Harm’s Way looks at land mine clearance. Talk about a tough job, you can’t pay me enough to walk a minefield looking for mines … What’s that? Oh they don’t– Oh. Technology. Yeah, that would work better.

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Comedy Central

5:00p/4:00 Central

• The New CW Sunday begins early at 5:30p/4:30 Central with Casey Affleck’s excursion to Pawnee-Oklahoma to meet with and learn about the Native Americans who make this their home in a new 4Real.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• Then, In Harm’s Way takes a look at the dangerous profession of war photographer. Alternately, NBC kicks off their night of football with Football Night in America, while ABC offers up a fresh America’s Funniest Home Videos. Is there anything we haven’t seen yet ever on this show?
• CBS’s 60 Minutes offers up stories of bullfighting brothers in Spain, warfare in Afghanistan, and the multi-billion dollar bank bailout in the US.

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