I adore TNT. For me, they seem to have come out of nowhere when Leverage boomed onto the scene (I know, I’m a late bloomer), but I’ve been keeping a good eye on them since then, and every decision they have made has been a winner.

Before Leverage, TNT was going strong with The Closer and Saving Grace, two unique series driven by strong women. Nothing bad about that angle! Since then they’ve realized their original programming is kind of kick-ass, so they’ve debuted Dark Blue and HawthoRNe. It’s like watching a good game of poker, as Kenny Rogers said: “You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em (Leverage), know when to fold ‘em (Trust Me), know when to walk away (Saving Grace being allowed to finish out), know when to run (*cough*Trust Me*cough*)….”

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It’s another week where the ratings news from cable is much more interesting than anything happening on the networks. The big story was the premiere of Project Runway (finally) on Lifetime, but there was plenty more fun to be had. Also getting in on the premiere game was Mad Men, Kourtney and Khloe, Hoarders, Ghost Hunters, and Flipping Out. There were also finales for Hawthorne, and Saving Grace. All that, plus records for True Blood, and the Degrassi kids. The networks countered with Octomom, and Shaq Vs. But not Shaq vs. Octomom, although I wouldn’t rule that out at this point. Read the rest of this entry »

Highlights of the Week

• Woah, man, like let’s get totally stoned tonight and watch Woodstock: Then & Now. Ever seen a burned out hippie? I have. It’s not pretty. (Mon. 8pm, History)
• The first season of Merlin wraps with a two-hour block starting at 7pm. While it’s been picked up for a second run in native Britain, there’s no word on whether NBC will go again with it. (Sun.)
• I can take him. And while I don’t think we’re going to see Shaq vs. Jason Hughes anytime soon, the series does premiere with the basketball behemoth taking on Ben Roethlisberger. The kick is that Shaq takes them on in their sport, not his. (Tue. 9pm, ABC)
• It’s Invitation Only with Reba McEntire, but don’t worry, CMT has yours so you can check it out. (Fri. 9pm)
• I’ll call this a lowlight of the week … so of course it’s on FOX. Hopefully, they’ll show her for the disaster she is. That’s right, it’s Octomom: The Incredible Unseen Footage. (Wed. 8pm, FOX)
• Project Runway flexes its muscles on its new home, Lifetime, with a two hour “All Star Challenge” special. That’s followed by the season premiere, so you get three hours for the price of one! (Thu. 8pm)
• But it’s still not over. Lifetime is so stoked, they’re debuting Models of the Runway, which follows the models of Project Runway as they try and make it in the world of high fashion. (Thu. 11pm)

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The big news in ratings this week wasn’t another series high for True Blood, the further decline of Defying Gravity, or even the return of Millionaire. Instead, it was the announcement that several big media and advertising companies are joining forces to create an alternative to Nielsen. My kneejerk reaction? The announcement is full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Well, then again, I suppose it signifies that the networks are pissed about shrinking audiences. Unfortunately, finding a new way to measure shrinking audiences won’t do anything to fix the problem. Read the rest of this entry »

We seem to have a glut of nursing shows right now, and I’ve been wondering why. Nursing shows aren’t new, per se. If you look back through history, you’ve got Julia, the 1968 series in which Diahann Carroll played a young nurse and single mom. The show was groundbreaking for a variety of reasons, namely because it starred an African American woman, raising a son alone because her husband died in the Vietnam war. That’s a lot of drama right there, especially given the era in which this show aired.

There have been a lot of shows that included nurses — certainly every doctor show that’s ever aired, including M*A*S*H, ER, China Beach, and all the hundreds of other medical shows. There was even a 1991 show called Nurses, which, apparently, lasted three seasons, though I have no recollection of it.

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The time has come to say so long,
I tried, and tried, but for me you’re wrong.
Jada Pinkett Smith, forgive my forsaking,
The work that you’ve done, my heart it’s not taken.

TNT knows drama, of cops and of robbers,
Leverage combines thieves with do-gooder plotters.
Grace and The Closer, and Dark Blue with badges
Raising the Bar even follows the adage.

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But HawthoRNe, what is it that you look to be?
Six episodes I’ve watched, and I still wait to see.
This week you brought us a bunch of emotion,
But tears and some heartbreak are no winning potion.

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I don’t understand anyone who’s light on stuff to watch during the summer. We’re loaded with new shows, plus, summer’s a great opportunity for the networks to bombard us with reruns, must watch and not. I spent twenty minutes last night, searching for later showings of movies that I’ve recorded, so I can free up some space on my TiVo. And I have 100 hours available to me.

• Friday night is usually a loser on TV. You can catch two episodes of According to Jim (my point exactly) on ABC (9–10 PM), moan over the loss of Privileged and Everybody Hates Chris on the CW, or lose yourself in CSI:NY on TNT, at 8. Or, you could check out DirecTV’s re-broadcasting of Smith, The Nine, and Oz … not too shabby, for those of you paying for the dish. Don’t got it? USA’s airing The 40-Year-Old Virgin … could be a perfect match, if you’re home to see it. I kid because I love!
• Saturday night’s even more of a dog, unless you’ve got the movie channels, in which case it’s premiere night for Mamma Mia! (HBO), Death Race (Cinemax), and Swing Vote (Starz), amongst others. If not? USA has House, TNT has HawthoRNe, and ABC’s re-showing Castle’s ‘A Chill Goes Through Her Veins’, at 9. And stay on that station for the ritual purging of Dirty Sexy Money.
• Sunday brings us back to Nickelodeon’s syndication run of Malcolm in the Middle; for some reason, they’re not exactly showing them in order, but two “new” episodes air every Sunday – Thursday night, 8 to 9 (actually, on Sunday it’s now at midnight. Oops.) There’re a bunch of shows on all over the dials, new and old, but, for my money, I’d watch Old School, TBS at 8. There’s nary a movie better. Meanwhile, I’ll be busy trying to watch new episodes of Army Wives, In Plain Sight, Hung, and Entourage, all of which air at roughly the same time. Please … what lack of new programming?