The VICIOUS TV News Wrap 05.23.06
Posted by Steve Vicious on 05.23.2006
The CW, ABC & CBS 2006-2007 TV schedules; "Everwood" canceled in favor of "7th Heaven"; Futurama takes off again, but it's not what you might be hoping for; NBC shakes up their Thursday night line-up; 24- The Movie news; Stacy Keibler has a seizure and much more!
- Written in front of a not-so-live studio audience in CA
- Opening Segment: Introduction
Welcome to the 35th edition of the Vicious TV News Wrap. I am your host Steve Vicious. First off, I would like to take the time to apologize to some of the readers out there for the Paris Hilton image that was supposed to have been a NSFW (Not Safe For Work) link. I received a lot of heat for that, but hopefully no harm was caused because of my mistake. And I think the poll might have been a LITTLE inappropriate, so I apologize for that too. I have one more week of the Vicious TV News Wrap to do and that will premiere next Tuesday (May 30th, 2006). Last week, I was actually tossing around the idea of continuing the VTNW or a variation of it for the entire month of June, but I decided against it at the last minute. It was a very difficult decision because I wanted to cover Rescue Me and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but I guess I might post them as mini-wraps on the 411 Blog. Okay, so let's get to this week's top television story.
The Top TV Story of the Week:
- The Networks Announce their plans for 2006-2007
As mentioned last week, the five big networks announced their plans for the 2006-2007 television season. The network I was most interested in was without question The CW. Let's start out there.
One of the big questions surrounding the merger of the WB and UPN was which shows would go on to the new network. The following shows have survived the cut and they are Veronica Mars, Gilmore Girls, Smallville, American's Next Top Model, Supernatural, One Tree Hill (SHOCKER!), Beauty and the Geek (HUGE SHOCKER), Girlfriends, Everybody Hates Chris, All of Us, and 7th Heaven. Yes, 7th Heaven has been resurrected for an 11th season. My jaw dropped to the floor because the WB did air a "series finale" a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, the CW keeping 7th Heaven around led to the ultimate end for the much unappreciated Everwood. I did mention a few weeks ago that Everwood would probably move to the CW only if 7th Heaven was out of the way. Everwood's cancellation also comes as an even bigger surprise because the show is actually drawing a good rating this season (averaging over a 3.0 rating), which just so happens to be much higher than the ratings for the still-around One Tree Hill and Veronica Mars. I think I'm also very shocked that the CW will be keeping the Ashton Kutcher "show" Beauty and the Geek. The CW's only has two new shows: The Game (I think this show is similar to BBC's Footballers Wives) and the Donnie Wahlberg (Saw II) show Runaway. Can the UPN and the WB combine their audience to pull in enough viewers to start being taken as a serious contender in the ratings war? No.
ABC's plan to takeover the ratings world led them to move Grey's Anatomy to the EXTREMELY competitive 9PM Thursday night slot. Not only that, ABC's Thursday night line-up is surrounded by three new series. Big Day, Notes from the Underbelly and Six Degrees will try to help ABC defeat CBS and NBC for supremacy on Thursday nights. I'm sure most of you can figure out that ABC's Thursday night line-up is very risky and it puts all the momentum Grey's Anatomy has gained in 2006 in jeopardy. In a very surprising move, ABC has decided to keep their new drama What About Brian around on Monday nights. The show has slipped in the ratings since premiering a few weeks ago and I still see it getting canceled. Also being kept around by ABC are Dancing with the Stars, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, George Lopez, Supernanny, According to Jim, American Inventor, Wife Swap and The Bachelor. The new series for the alphabet network include Ted Danson's new show Help Me Help You, Let's Rob, Betty the Ugly, In Case of Emergency, Day Break, Brothers & Sisters, Men in Trees, The Nine, and Traveler.
CBS is depending on big names to pull in the ratings, such as James Woods and Ray Liotta. Woods will star in Shark and Liotta will star in a criminal drama called Smith. Other new shows include Jericho, 3Lbs (a mid-season replacement), Waterfront, The Class (from David Crane, the creator of Friends) and Rules of Engagement. Freshman shows returning include How I Met Your Mother, Criminal Minds, The Unit, Ghost Whisperer, The New Adventures of Old Christine and Close to Home. CBS is the number one network and I don't see them losing their grip on the top slot in 2006-2007.
Unfortunately, that's it for the 2006-2007 schedules because I could not find enough information for FOX or NBC. Also, I ran into some time constraints, but I will start working on the VTNW earlier than usual for the season finale next Tuesday.
Random TV News: - NBC shakes up their Thursday Night Line-up
In a rather unsurprising move, NBC has decided to move My Name is Earl and The Office up an hour (taking the place of Will & Grace) to their 8PM and 8:30PM slots. The new Matthew Perry show Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip to the 9-10PM slot (BOO!!!). E.R. was rumored to be moving to Tuesday nights, but NBC has decided to keep it around at 10PM on Thursdays. Man, I really wanted Scrubs on Thursday nights, but I guess it's not meant to be.
- FOX Reality
I have been bombarded with a ton of promotion for FOX's new cable show dubbed "FOX Reality." I think we all know that the last thing FOX should be tied with is reality. Oh, Joe Millionaire is on...
- Futurama movies
I'm not sure if this is old news or new news (I saw it recently mentioned on Adult Swim), but Billy West (he voices Fry, Zoidberg, Captain Zapp Brannigan, etc.) announced on his website that there will be four straight DVD release feature length films based on Futurama. This is great news for fans of the show (ME!!!), but I was also hoping for the show to be resurrected, which CNN reported was in the works. FOX did not announce the resurrection of the show, but I sure hope Cartoon Network or Comedy Central will do it for us. The films will begin production in June 2006.
- 24: The Movie still in development 24 star Kiefer Sutherland recently mentioned that the film is still in the works and may be shot in between the sixth and seventh seasons of the show. Speaking of Sutherland, has anyone checked out the video of him being a violent drunk and attacking a Christmas tree?
- Blade: The TV Series
Spike TV will air their new television based on the Marvel Comics' film franchise Blade on June 28th.
- It's Always Sunny in FOX
YES! FOX has decided to give the FX show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia a three-week trial. The first episode will air on June 11th at 9:30PM and will be three episodes from the first season. This is great news for fans of the show, such as myself, because Always Sunny wasn't setting the ratings world on fire during their first season last summer. The show needs all the promotion it can get. I hope they show the episode where Charlie gets molested. That was hilarious.
- The World's First Super Model
That would be Janice Dickenson, former judge for America's Next Top Model, who will now have a show on Oxygen called The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency. The show will deal with -- what else -- models. The show will premiere on June 6th.
- Stacy Keibler has a seizure
Former Dancing with the Stars and WWE Diva Stacy Keibler had a seizure last week while she was in her hotel room. It was not serious, but she was taken to the hospital for observation and is now reportedly in fine condition.
- Conan O'Brien to host the Emmy Awards Late Night's Conan O'Brien was recently announced to host the 58th annual Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony on August 17th, 2006. Conan is always hilarious so this will be a major winner for the viewers.
- Commander in Chief will just not die
It seems that the creator and Executive Producer of Commander in Chief have pitched a two-hour TV movie as a proper series finale for the show. ABC is said to be strongly considering it, but why can't they just do a two-part series finale? TV Movie? Ah...
- The Bedford Diaries axed
The WB's The Bedford Diaries will not be making the jump to the CW. This doesn't come as much of a surprise as the show was dead on arrival after the WB/UPN merger deal went through. The show is awful and pointless to watch. I expected a lot better from Oz creator Tom Fontana.
The Vicious TV Mini-Wrap:
- Scrubs: "My Urologist" (Part 1)
J.D. challenges a urologist's patient assessment. Meanwhile, Dr. Kelso & the Janitor feud, which the Janitor manages to win because he has video footage of Kelso destroying a van. And Keith stands up to Carla for Elliot. ***1/2
- Scrubs: "My Transition" (Part 2; Season 5 Finale)
Elliot gets in the way as J.D. tries to plan the perfect date with Dr. Briggs. The best part of the episode was that gay senior citizens were using J.D.'s porch as a hangout. He chases them off with a broom. ****
- Law & Order: SVU- "Influence" (Season 7 Finale)
A rock star wages an anti-psychiatric-drug campaign. This was a VERY disappointing episode that seemed to drift too many times around Brittany Snow's character's mental problems and it left a bad taste in my mouth. Oh, my Snow Flake, what did you do to yourself? ***
- The O.C.: "The Graduates" (Season Finale)
Graduation brings excitement and anxiety; Ryan's mother arrives with a surprise; Marissa receives a major proposal. Oliver is mentioned. Volchuk tries to drive Ryan & Marissa over. OMFG Marissa is DEAD?! Well, this could be a swerve. The episode was very "teen" early on, but once it became serious it was good stuff. I'm still not completely sold on Marissa's death yet. I will have to wait until the season four premiere to see whether or not Marissa is dead. They showed a mini-preview of life without Marissa after the season finale, so I expect a swerve. Until then, go to Cris Murphy for predicting the future. ***1/2
The Vicious PULSE: (NEW FEATURE!!!)
- Gears of War: The Race to E3 (Spike TV)
The Vicious Pulse is a new feature that will cover television programs that I feel may be of interest to you. It could be anything from VH1's Behind the Music to something on Univision. The inaugural segment belongs to Spike TV's Gears of War: The Race to E3. The show covers the developers of the Xbox 360 mega game Gears of War from Epic Games. I have always been fascinated by the behind-the-scenes of a video game development company. Anyway, the show sees Epic Games rush through the week before E3 2006 where they would unleash their "masterpiece" at the Microsoft keynote speech. I thought it was an interesting show and it's well worth it for any Xbox 360 fans.
The Nielsen Ratings: May 8th-14th, 2006
CBS' CSI finally topped FOX's American Idol this week in the ratings! Elsewhere, Grey's Anatomy continues to be ABC's number one show in the ratings. Does anyone remember last year when I accidentally called Grey's ABC's second highest rated show? Well, I guess the show has finally gone all the way up in the world. Of course, I full expect Grey's to get crushed on Thursday nights against CSI. We will probably see Will & Grace in the top 10 and Desperate Housewives will likely pull in a monster rating for their two hour season finale. Onto the rest of the top 10:
CSI (CBS) 17.0
American Idol- TUES (FOX) 16.8
American Idol- WED (FOX) 16.1
House (FOX) 14.6
Grey's Anatomy (ABC) 14.1
CSI: Miami (CBS) 13.1
Desperate Housewives (ABC) 12.9
Without A Trace (CBS) 12.9 [T-7]
NCIS (CBS) 10.1
Survivor: Panama- Exile Island (CBS) 10.0
New TV-on-DVD Released Today: May 23, 2006
- Samurai Jack: Season 3 (Pick of the Week)
While I was never a huge fan of the show when it aired, I don't think I ever gave it the opportunity to impress me. I know it comes from the creators of one of my favorite cartoons, Dexter's Lab, so it's probably a very good show.
- The 4400: Season 2
- Boston Legal: The Complete 1st Season
- The Bugaloos: The Complete Series
- The Closer: The Complete 1st Season
- Deadwood: Season 2
- The Dog Whisperer: Season 1
- M*A*S*H: Season 10
- Redwall: Season 2
- Wings: Seasons 1 & 2
- X-Men: Evolution- The Complete 3rd Season
Viciously Ridiculous:
Last week, the CW network canceled "Everwood" in favor of "Veronica Mars" and "One Tree Hill." Both of the shows being kept around are less than draws, but Veronica Mars is a VERY good show. However, "One Tree Hill" is probably one of the worst shows on television right now. Some of you might not be aware of this, but I used to like the show a lot during its first season. But then it turned into such a drag to watch that I quit the show during season two. On the other hand, "Everwood" has always been an excellent show and has drawn a 1.0 HIGHER than OTH this season. Damn you, CW!!! Ridiculous? That's up to you.
The Vicious TV Poll of the Week:
I want to forget last week's poll question, but I will give you the results: F.F. ended up with 37%; Gag ended with 24%; Suck ended with 21%; None ended up with 18%. I was going to ask you if you though Marissa Cooper was dead, but I realized that none of you care or are 13-year-old girls (LIKE ME!!!), so this week's poll question asks you the following:
The Vicious TV Babe of the Week: - Brittany Snow
I don't have enough time to fully complete the Babe of the Week, but I'll just leave you with some images of the lovely Brittney Snow. I promise to make it up to you next week with TWO TV babes for the price of one. Brittany Snow images
The Vicious FeedBack: (NEW FEATURE)
From 411 Wrestling's Andy Clark: I just wanted to echo your frustrations with Gilmore Girls. Seeing as how we don't have a WB station here I have to watch the new episodes at 2:30 am on Tuesday mornings, and needless to say this whole Luke-Lorelai deal has gotten me angry. I realize that in a television show things aren't supposed to be handled as well as they would be in real life, otherwise there would be no plot, but to see genuinely good characters completely screw up a situation goes from being dramatic to depressing. Like you I was expecting the meltdown with Luke, and I was even anticipating a break up so they can spend next season (hopefully they'll bring it back so they can fix this mess) getting back together, but the Christopher deal really overdid it for me. I actually think that if that was the route they wanted to go then they should have ended the episode with that shot of Lorelai entering Christopher's place and then the door closing, that leaves the whole off season of wondering "Did she or didn't she?" Now that we know that she actually slept with him that deflates a lot of the power of her and Luke getting back together because people will be left wondering "But how does she make THAT right?" I seriously hope that the writer has some sort of plan already how to fix this next season and that they didn't write this just for shocks sake, otherwise I think they'll really find themselves in a hole creatively as they would have burnt out some of the emotional attachment to the characters. Here's hoping next season sees Rory get pissed at Lorelai for hurting Luke and they can turn her around from the little brat she's become in her older years. Then again she'll probably have her hands full with Jess (or maybe Dean?) now that Logan is gone for a year. I suppose this could all be a moot point if the CW doesn't announce their return next season. Wouldn't that be a horrible way to end the show? Anyhow, sorry for typing your head off over what most would consider a chick show (especially those in my zone) but I'm glad to see I wasn't the only one that was pissed.
My Responce: I think part of the HORRIBLE ending to season 6 of GG was largely due to the creators of the show leaving town. I'm not sure if they wrote the season finale, but I think so because they are not leaving under their own terms since they wanted a 2-year contract extension instead of the 1-year offer from the WB. They didn't get what they wanted, so they probably screwed the show on purpose. I have expressed my dislike for the Gilmores throughout season six (and going back to season five), so the show's season finale has continued the trend of leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth.
The Wrap-up:
Well, it was another nice week of television and I would like to thank myself for showing up to do the show. I would also like to thank myself for searching through the television, Google, magazines, and anything else for television news. Also, you may opine via email regarding any piece of television news, opinion, rumor, gossip, etc, by clicking the feedback button below. Remember, I'm looking out for your television viewing needs and I hope you all come back for season finale next Tuesday (May 30th, 2006).
The Vicious TV News Wrap Credits:
Written & Directed by Steve Vicious
Art/Graphic Designs by SteveCorp
Executive Producers: Steve Vicious, Ashish Pabari & Scott Rutherford
Original Concept by Scott Rutherford & Steve Vicious
A SteveCorp.net & 411mania.com Presentation
>>>The Happy Critic: Ryan, your blog URL doesn't work anymore! We must know what will happen with your book deal!
>>> American Dad: Volume 1 should be completed this week. I always post the links on my blog to any of my 411 stuff days before it shows up on the main site.
On the Next Vicious TV News Wrap (EP#36): May 30th, 2006 (Season Finale)
- We will be prepared for the premiere of FX's Rescue Me next Tuesday.
- Part 2 of my look at what the networks (NBC & FOX) have in store for you, including the cancelation of Conviction.
- What to look forward to on "reality" and scripted shows this summer.
- Two TV babes for the price of one!
- NBC shakes up their Thursday Night Line-up
- Futurama movies
- 24: The Movie still in development
- Blade: The TV Series
- It's Always Sunny in FOX
- The World's First Super Model
- Stacy Keibler has a seizure
- Conan O'Brien to host the Emmy Awards
- Commander in Chief will just not die
- The Bedford Diaries axed
The Nielsen Ratings: May 8th-14th, 2006
- Brittany Snow
