We’re still a week away from the #1 DVD release of the summer, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some fine wares hitting shelves this week. A few of USA’s favorite characters show up, with season sets for Psych and Monk. Speaking of characters, has any show had a more unique collection of them than Pushing Daisies? And The Mighty Boosh? It’s just a character bonanza this week. You can also be on the lookout for new offerings from Stargate, Prison Break, Route 66, SpongeBob, and a host of others. My pick of the week would be Pushing Daisies. The big list is after the jump.

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That didn’t take long. When Conan debuted on the Tonight Show, his premiere soundly defeated Letterman. Of course, as expected, the curiosity of the premiere wore off immediately, and the numbers began to drop. Things really got interesting last week as we started seeing the first signs that the late night war is back on. In week 2 for Conan, Letterman actually managed to win a couple nights in the overnight household ratings. NBC is quick to point out that Conan is still tops in the younger demos.

While that is true, it’s worth noting that the last time Letterman managed to top Leno in the overnights was some eight months ago. Considering that the late night shows operate on scales of years, it’s way too early to declare a winner. However, it all does serve to make the late night ratings race, one which Leno had pretty much owned for years, very interesting again. Elsewhere this week, more good news for cable, from The Closer, Burn Notice, and Royal Pains. Back on the networks, The Bachelorette and I’m A Celebrity squared off again, the dancing kids were winners for FOX, and even without Lebron, the NBA was very good to ABC. Read the rest of this entry »

Yes, the boys over at USA earned the headline this week. There just really wasn’t that much to talk about where the networks were concerned. For example, CBS was the most watched network on three different nights, with a combination of repeats and one episode of Million Dollar Password.  It was much more interesting seeing the press release from USA that revealed Burn Notice had 6 million viewers for the season premiere. Royal Pains was right on pace with 5.6 million. It will be interesting to see if Royal Pains can stay that close as the weeks progress. After the jump, it’s the NBA vs the NHL, So You Think You Can Dance vs Wipeout, and I’m A Celebrity vs the basic common sense of viewers. Read the rest of this entry »

At least we’ll have the comic book continuation. It’s worked tremendously well so far for Farscape, Buffy and Angel. That said, Pushing Daisies charm is so much in the narration, the bright pastels and the whole tone of it visually and aurally that I fear it will be lost in the translation to a words-and-static-images format.

That being said, there’s also that strangely frenetic and beautiful grown-up storybook dialogue that would read just fine. I can certainly put the right voices with the right words. At any rate, since Bryan Fuller pretty much told me (you do know we hang out… oh yeah, all the time!) that the series finale wasn’t going to be satisfying in any way, I’ll be looking for those comics to continue the story.

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We’ve talked about it before, but it’s worth bringing up again as we kick off the summer viewing season. The various CBS crime shows don’t get all the sexy press coverage that things like Grey’s Anatomy, Lost, or Heroes do, but they still manage to compete very well in new episodes. Where they really shine though, is in repeats.

This past week saw CBS as the most watched network, despite only having three hours of non-repeat programming. Even better, with only repeats, they were able to win the demo on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday. If you really want to see the power of CBS crimetime, an NCIS repeat on USA was the highest rated scripted show on cable last week, trailing basketball and wrestling. Even better, NCIS was number 6 in the top 20 cable programs. Cable watchers do love their Gibbs. Read the rest of this entry »

Oh, Pushing Daisies (or PDubs, as I like to refer to you privately where no one can make fun of me), I missed you. I missed you so very much. I missed your colors, I missed your beauteous cinematography (or is it telematography in this case?). I even missed your terribly wonderful puns (the “Rock Me Almond Date Quince” was possibly the most genius thing I have ever heard). It almost hurts me how good you are, because I know, soon, we shall be parted forever, and I shall never gaze upon you and your amazing costumes ever again.

How am I going to survive without my regularly scheduled allotment of Lee Pace making my heart go pitter-pat? How will I go on without Chuck teaching me how to dress? Where else can I turn to for Emerson Cod and his Itty Bitty? Can I continue without Vivian and Lily to make my heart break and yet grow from joy every week? And has there ever been an animal sidekick I have loved more than I love Digby (and Pigby)? Without you I fear my heart will wither into a blackened, moldy crisp, much like one of Ned’s fruits. Read the rest of this entry »

Just because most of your broadcast TV shows are gone for the summer doesn’t mean there’s nothing to watch. And you know we wouldn’t leave you hanging. So here’s a rundown of some of this week’s hotspots.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK

• NBC thinks they know what TV’s 50 Funniest Phrases are, and they’re going to take 2 hours to make their argument. (Tue. 8pm)
• Pushing Daisies is back to wrap its second season, burning off its last few episodes before making way for Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Money (Sat. 10pm, ABC)
• And you thought there was nothing on! It’s The 2009 Scripps National Spelling Bee. What’s really said is how many viewers at home couldn’t hold a candle to the spelling skills of these kids. (Thu. 8pm, ABC)
• HBO offers Into the Storm, a follow-up to The Gathering Storm, chronicling the further “adventures” of Winston Churchill from ‘40-’45. (Sun. 9pm)

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