Premiere week doesn’t stop the flow of DVDs. This week we have another bunch of the current shows releasing season sets, including Fringe, The Office, Criminal Minds, Important Things with Demetri Martin, and Parks and Recreation. There are also a couple one and done shows, as the complete collections of Harper’s Island and Worst Week make their debut. For the kiddos, you’ll find Alvin and the Chipmunks, Inspector Gadget, Goosebumps, Power Rangers, and True Jackson. Read the rest of this entry »

The summer season is getting under way now. Here’s a handy guide of what’s to come:

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK

• It hasn’t even debuted yet and I’m already annoyed with NBC’s I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here. I say get them all out of there, and off my screen before the two-hour premiere. (Mon. 8pm)
• But if you can’t get enough of Heidi Montag and Spender Pratt, you can flip over to MTV and see “Speidi’s Wedding Unveiled” in a special presentation of The Hills. (Mon. 11pm)
• Scare tactics are alive and well on ABC’s Earth 2100, which takes a speculative look at how we might just wipe ourselves out in the next 100 years. It WILL happen. Bob Woodruff says so. (Tue. 9pm)
• The following night NBC takes us into the Presidency with Inside the Obama White House: Brian Williams Reports. I wonder if he’ll ask how we’re going to avert oblivion in the next century. (Wed. 9pm)
• Just in time for Land of the Lost, find out how Will Ferrell would really fare in the wild as he takes it on with Bear Grylls in a special Man vs. Wild on Discovery (Tue. 10pm)
• The NBA Finals kick off with a Jimmy Kimmel special on ABC before the Orlando Magic take on the Los Angeles Lakers. (Thu. 8pm)
• It’s The Tony Awards in HD for the first time on CBS, and it’s hosted by NPH himself, Neil Patrick Harris! (Sun. 8pm)
• Worst Week is back to burn off its remaining episodes on CBS (Sat. 8:30pm)

Read the rest of this entry »

A few months back, I took cursor to digital paper and wrote an ode to shows that I’ve lost over the years. With yet another network television season complete, I believe it’s time to revisit that list, and add an addendum cataloging the massacre that accompanies the close of each season.

For all of you still out there fighting the good fight for these shows, this should in no way be seen as final. I’d love to come back and correct myself. So, keep sending those watches, bulletproof vests, lottery tickets, live butterflies, pitchforks, or whatever else you can think of. But, if this is the end, I figure now’s as good a time as any to pay my respects. And, if you’re wondering why the following’s light on the jokes … the fresher the wound, the deeper the hurt.

I’ve already written about the plight of The Unusuals. A lot of people have applied the show’s title to the conceit, and either used it as a pro or a con for what they see as different or ordinary, respectively. The only thing “unusual” about the show was the following: it was great from the get go. Sure, each character had a quirk, and there was an otherwise infrequently seen mix of excitement and comedy to the scripts, but what stood out the most for me was honestly how enjoyable an hour it was to spend in front of my television. I’d absolutely love to see it live to air another day (beyond closing out the episodes already in the can), but if it’s not to be, at least it went out as great from beginning to end. Read the rest of this entry »

Wednesday’s the big day, people! Tomorrow, CBS will announce its new fall schedule, potentially including some spring debuts and jiggerings as well. This is the one we’ve all been waiting for.

You see, CBS is riding high on the hog. Of all the major networks today, The Eye enjoys the greatest amount of scripted series success. Rarely can you count on two hands the number of CBS shows that appear in the weekly top 20 rankings. And, as much as we can debate the merits of CSI: Everywhere, and procedurals ad nauseam, they all work, and are all being enjoyed by many millions of fans.

This success, however, comes at a price. Not necessarily for the network, but for any show not lucky enough to be an immediate high-flyer. In addition, the competition for new shows on the CBS lineup is brutal. This year, space is so tight that CBS spent the past few months pondering the futures of juggernauts Cold Case and Without a Trace. Thankfully, Cold Case has been given an extension; the news does not bode well for Without a Trace. Read the rest of this entry »

Why the Kanye? Hell, why not? Rules of Engagement is back, and I’m celebrating!

Okay, I know what you’re all thinking: what about Worst Week? Yes, it’s true that Rules of Engagement will be assuming Worst Week’s time-slot for now. But, never fear: CBS is not making any statement about the fate of either show (as far as I’ve heard). My guess is the two may share the half-hour in coming seasons. Both seem to attract the same basic audience, and while neither show has ever put up big numbers, both decently complement an otherwise strong night of comedy for The Eye.

Read the rest of this entry »

(2/1 – 2/7)

Turns out, not much. If you watched the big game, you couldn’t have missed the heavy promotion for the new NBC Monday. Chuck, Heroes, and Medium all got plenty of exposure. There was even a song and dance number. The Office got its fair share as well, with the bonus of being the show that followed the game. At the end of the day though, throwing those ads at 98 million sets of eyeballs didn’t bring the ratings that the network was looking for. Read the rest of this entry »

(1/12 – 1/18)

No. Not really. In fact, it was the lowest rated premiere the show has ever had. Somehow though, ABC managed to massage those numbers so much that they felt ok producing a promo that called it bigger than ever. It’s lipstick on a pig. DVR, streaming, illicit downloads, no matter what spin you want to put on it, Lost is way down from its once lofty numbers, and it has virtually no chance of ever regaining those lost viewers. It’s not all bad though, because what is left of the audience is still pretty substantial. We’ll get to those numbers, find out what happened in the latest round of the Grey’s / CSI battle, and see if those 30 Rock numbers managed to drop again, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »