Headlines 62
July 03, 2010

Headlines awakens from its month and a half long hibernation

Larry King will step down as the host on Larry King Live on CNN sometime in the Fall. Larry King Live ends with an impressive 25-year reign. It’s a shame to see an old veteran leave television but I haven’t watched King in a really, really long time.

NBC has sent new Thursday show Love Bites to midseason. Right now the plan is to bring the original version of The Apprentice back. I was a fan of the Apprentice for its first three seasons but I stopped watching until the Celebrity version came out. As for Love Bites, it’s a shame to see it bumped but the show runner bowed up. NBC bumped Parenthood to midseason last year following the exit of Maura Tierney; we will see if it can work for Love Bites. I did say it wouldn’t last during upfront analysis though.

New Canadian import Rookie Blue delivered for ABC. The show brought in 7.2 million viewers, not too shabby for regular season let alone summer season. Blue also performed well with women, the demo that ABC was looking for. Despite its efforts to not look Canadian, I still watched it.

Fan(s) of Eastwick, there’s bad news. The final episodes of the show have been bumped in favor of repeats of The Gates and Scoundrels. Both of these shows are probably going to join Eastwick in TV Hell soon enough. ABC will probably put the show out on DVD, but does anyone actually want it?

Apparently NBC’s Persons Unknown was unknown to most of America. The show will be moved to Saturday where it will be burned off. Network shows that do poorly are usually banished to summer but it’s funny to see a summer show banished for doing poorly.

Smallville has seen more seasons that it likely should have and seen most of the original cast depart. However, John Schneider will be returning for a few episodes. I’m not sure how this will work since his character died five years ago, but this is science fiction…

Headlines 61
May 18, 2010

Before I begin, I just wanted to acknowledge Law & Order’s cancellation. As most of you who read my work know, I am not happy with this decision. I understand NBC is making serious revamps to the network, which also included the cancellation of Heroes. However I think Chuck’s renewal was at least partially based on its rabid fan base who would lash out at NBC for cancelling it. They traded one backlash for another, one that will have a much great magnitude. NBC does not plan to air a proper series finale for its longest running show, which is beyond insulting given the franchise’s storied history on television. Law & Order’s ratings have dropped but it is a season away from history and a series that has been around for as long as Law & Order deserves some respect. Dick Wolf has stated how he doesn’t think Law & Order is definitely finished and I hope NBC gives Law & Order the proper treatment that ER received last year. NBC has been full of controversy over the past few years and this is ridiculous.

With that out of the way let’s look at some headlines

The CW gave the green light to both Life Unexpected and One Tree Hill. I’m not too surprised by this because One Tree Hill has been solid in the ratings despite losing two top stars last year and Life Unexpected needs some time to develop. I also didn’t see The CW cancelling One Tree Hill without a proper goodbye but the paragraph above shows that some networks don’t care about that.

NBC has stated that it plans to continue The Office without Steve Carrell. I don’t want to make jokes because I’m clearly mad at NBC so if any of you have anything funny to say, send me an e-mail.

V has been moved to midseason. I hinted that it was a good idea IF ratings improved (which they didn’t). This has bad idea written all over it.

Super Friends is out on DVD. This might not be news but it doesn’t stop me from wanting it any less. Maybe we can get a deal with amazon…

That’s it for today’s headlines/rant. I’m going to start on upfront coverage in the news section tomorrow. Send your question/comments to ian@tvhell.net

Headlines 60
May 05, 2010

ABC has decided to expand the series finale of Lost by an extra half hour. Two and a half hours for a finale may seem excessive to some, but this is not nearly enough for Lost.

FX has renewed new hit Justified for a second season. This is a great move for FX as it has been struggling to find new shows. Justified joins Sons of Anarchy as part of FX’s much needed youth movement.

ABC Family has cancelled 10 Things I Hate About You. I can’t find 10 reasons to be upset about this.

The Boondocks finally made its return to Adult Swim and seemed to be unaffected by the long wait. Around two and a half million viewers watched its season premier, a series high.

More news on the odds of V and Life Unexpected. The CW seems to be stuck between renewing either One Tree Hill or Life Unexpected. This seems like a no brainer to me as Life Unexpected is younger, cheaper, and has an actual upside. However I find it hard to believe that The CW will cancel One Tree Hill without advertising a proper series finale complete with the returns of Chad Michael Murray and Hillarie Burton. As for V, its ratings are at the point where it could go either way. ABC hasn’t renewed any other freshmen dramas though so it could get another shot.

That’s it for today; send you questions and comments to ian@tvhell.net. I’m going to work on the What-If and Spotlight pages once the May Upfronts are over so send me your feedback about those as well.

Headlines 59
April 22, 2010

Hulu may begin charging for its service as soon as next month. I use Hulu on occasion but the reported 9.95 seems to be a bit much. I have three Tivos in my household and the thought of paying even more for TV is a bit ridiculous.

I try to avoid commenting on pilots (though I seem to be doing it a lot lately) but I thought this was interesting. FOX was developing an American version of Torchwood, a British spinoff of the long running Doctor Who. Fox passed on the project but I expect it to receive interest from a few cable networks. Torchwood is very popular on BBC and BBC America.

NBC has renewed Parenthood for a second season. This should come as no surprise. Parenthood is one of the few shows on NBC with some potential.

Life Unexpected and V are the only two remaining dramas whose fate is still up in the air. I think both with be renewed as The CW and ABC could use some youth in the line-up. V’s ratings are less than spectacular so it might not be renewed however.

Curb Your Enthusiasm will be back for an eighth season. This makes it the longest running scripted HBO show (by season not by episode) in history. This is somewhat puzzling since the show was rumored to end after the fifth season.

Headlines 58
April 16, 2010

Conan O’Brien has agreed to join TBS’ late night line-up. TBS has shown promise since hiring George Lopez and it didn’t look like the whole Fox thing was working out for Conan. This is a good move. NBC still owes him over 30 million dollars so his basic cable contract doesn’t need to be that high.

News on the ratings front, V is looking promising. V pulled in around six million viewers. This may be good enough to give it another season. Parenthood also fared well in the Tuesday at 10 timeslot.

USA is developing a new Robin Hood series titled Robyn, which will switch the gender of the legendary do-gooder. I don’t normally comment on pilots but I thought this was worth mentioning.

I’ve heard some news that isn’t good for Arrested Development fans. David Cross, one of the shows stars has said that the movie is not going to happen. There was news last year that the movie was going to be made once Michael Cera was on board but that no longer seems to be the case.

Spike TV didn’t need a thousand reasons to renew 1,000 Ways to Die. The show delivered very solid ratings and Spike TV gave it the green light for two more seasons.

Questions? Comments? Thought Headlines lacked interesting news? Send your questions and what-ifs to ian@tvhell.net

Headlines 57
April 07, 2010

This edition of Headlines will mainly serve as an update of my latest news piece.

Southland’s ratings indicate that TNT will cancel it. I had hopes that it could retain the so-so numbers that it had on NBC but that did not turn out to be the case.

Life Unexpected is one of the few shows on primetime whose outcome is really up in the air. The CW drama is brining in solid ratings, which are actually on par with most of the network’s line-up yet there’s still a lot of doubt as to whether or not it will be back. Contrary to what The CW thinks, a youth movement is crucial for its success. One Tree Hill, Supernatural, Smallville, and America’s Next Top Model are all getting up there in the years.

V is the other big question mark. I think Flash Forward will get sacked regardless of V’s fate but I think ABC might end up bringing it back. ABC is also in need of a youth movement and V has a decent amount of publicity. Of course if last night’s ratings were awful then V will probably go.

I didn’t include new drama Miami Medical on my list because it hadn’t premièred yet. I don’t think I needed to, its not coming back.

Fans of Legend of the Seeker (speak out if you exist) will be happy to hear that the show has seen a spike in ratings. At this point I think cancellation is a mistake though Tribune seems to disagree.

That’s it for this Headlines. Questions can be sent to ian@tvhell.net. Since Headlines takes a summer break, I’m preparing the What-If section for its return. Send me your what-ifs so that I don’t have to think of them. TV Hell Spotlight will also be launched once the website gets its redesign that Rich has been working on.

Headlines 56
April 03, 2010

S. Epatha Merkenson is leaving Law & Order. I rarely put cast changes in Headlines but Anita Van Buren has been part of Law & Order since season four. She will be missed.

Speaking of cast changes, Charlie Sheen wants off Two and Half Men. This situation is similar to Alec Baldwin who requested off 30 Rock following a controversy surrounding his daughter. Obviously Sheen is in much bigger trouble and is a producer on the show. My guess is that the show attempts to carry on. Angus Jones is getting up there in the years maybe he can replace Sheen and they can rename the show Two Men. Doesn’t have the same ring to it…

Leno is back to beating Letterman. The Tonight Show has built a sizable lead over The Late Show. Say what you will about the switch, this was clearly the right move.

Syndicated sci-fi fantasy show The Legend of the Seeker may be cancelled. Its producing company Tribune isn’t pleased with ratings but it may continue if ABC can find a new market for it.

DirecTV may step in to help save struggling FX drama Damages. This could be a good move, though Damages’ ratings are so atrocious that I don’t really think this is a smart move.

Showtime renewed both The United States of Tara and Nurse Jackie for third seasons. This is good news since its drama department is getting up there in the years.

I put out my predictions for which shows will come back on the news section. Any questions about that or anything else can be sent to ian@tvhell.net

Headlines 55
March 24, 2010

Scrubs has finally been officially cancelled. I know we’ve been down this road before (five or six times) but I’m pretty sure this is it.

Starz is producing a pilot that is surrounded around King Arthur tentatively titled Camelot. It’s hard for me to get excited about anything Starz does but this sounds interesting.

Larry David has hinted that there will be an eighth season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. This is pretty shocking since there have been questions surrounding Curb’s future since season five’s finale was titled “The End”

SYFY is planning another Battlestar Galactica spinoff. Ratings for Caprica have been less than spectacular but it isn’t cancelled just yet. I bashed SYFY in my latest news piece and I don’t really think this is the smartest move for SYFY to be making at this point.

Damages ratings are in the cellar. First run episodes are averaging under a million, which will make it very hard for the show to come back next year.

The time for shows to check into TV Hell is coming up. I have a news piece for later this week, which will take a look at which, shows are going to be back next year. Send me an e-mail at ian@tvhell.net if you wish to know sooner.

Headlines 54
March 06, 2010

90210, Smallville, and The Vampire Diaries are both picked up for next year. Melrose Place’s chances are not good but I wouldn’t lose all hope yet.

NBC’s whole Thursday comedy line-up was renewed. This shouldn’t be a surprise as it’s one of the only things NBC does right.

Speaking of NBC, new dramedy Parenthood debuted to a little over 8 million viewers. This looks bad on paper but is promising given how poorly NBC has done coupled with the fact that some people still don’t know that it has returned to the ten o’clock slot.

Should Fox cancel 24, NBC has hinted that it will pick up the show. This could be a great move for NBC. I think 24 is well past its prime (season four is when I started to lose interest) but this could be great publicity for the peacock network.

Archer, FX’s new animated comedy, has been renewed for a second season. I like this move because animated comedy has really been lacking in places that aren’t Fox on Sunday nights and Adult Swim (except for South Park)

CBS cancellations are always hard to predict but this year it’s safe to say that Cold Case is a goner. The show barely escaped cancellation last year thanks to Without a Trace but its luck has likely run out. The show has had a nice seven-year run and has plenty of episodes for a nice syndication run. NUMB3RS is likely finished as well.

Headlines 53
February 08, 2010

Heroes’ season finale is tonight. Does anyone remember a successful show that ended in February? Me neither.

Smallville had a big night for The CW on Friday. Its two-hour movie drew nearly three million viewers (aka excellent for The CW on a Friday). I was very against the spilt of the Smallville/Supernatural Thursday night line-up but it seems to be working quite nicely.

Human Target is in trouble. I left it off my piece on Fox in the News section for a reason. It won’t last long.

Ugly Betty is done. It was starting to get beat by The Jay Leno Show.

Charlie Sheen may go to jail. I don’t think CBS likes the idea of One and a Half Men. This could be bad for their Monday night dominance.

Parks and Recreation was green lit for a third season. I’m not a huge fan of the Amy Poehler comedy but NBC is going to be swamped with new shows next year.

Questions? Comments? Words of Praise? Send them to ian@tvhell.net. I haven’t plugged our twitter page in awhile (I forgot about it) Follow us at http://twitter.com/tvhell

Headlines 52
January 27, 2010

Well, the Leno-Conan disaster is finally over. Leno is going to get the Tonight Show back in March and Conan secured a 45 million dollar severance package for himself and his crew. I’m not sure if I want to do a full article on this since I’ve covered it pretty extensively but there’s a good question in the Ask Ian section that a TV Hell reader wrote to me about the subject.

How I Met Your Mother and Survivor both received full season orders from CBS for next year. This shouldn’t be a surprise as both improved on their ratings from last year.

Forest Whitaker is reported to have signed a deal to star in a Criminal Minds spinoff on CBS. Whitaker played a terrific villain during seasons five and six of The Shield so while I’m not sure how much I love the idea of seeing him on TV again, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Ricky Gervais has hinted that he may guest star in the American version of The Office next season. Gervais is currently listed as a producer for the show. The Office is showing some signs of aging so this is definitely something that needs to happen before The Office concludes its run.

Modern Family and Cougar Town both received early pickups for next year. Scrubs and Better of Ted are probably headed to TV Hell within a few months. Scrubs has literally used up all its nine lives as it has always escaped death at the last minute of just about every season that it’s been on the air.

Steven Spielberg is working on a new alien TV show with TNT. I don’t usually report about pilots but Noah Wyle is set to star and I’m still a huge ER fan. Wyle found great success with TNT as the star of The Librarian series so this could be a huge hit for them.

Questions? Comments? Words of praise? Send them to ian@tvhell.net

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