The VICIOUS TV News Wrap 09.04.07
Posted by Steve Vicious on 09.04.2007
The "Dancing with the Stars" lineup is revealed! "Rescue Me" actor dumps on Denis Leary? Veronica Mars heads on over to "Heroes"? Victoria Beckham gets UGLY! NBC versus iTunes? Cavemen are appearing on ABC? And will Clay Aiken be "smarter than a fifth grader?" Plus, Victoria Beckham is your TV babe of the week! All that and much more in the season three premiere of the VICIOUS TV News Wrap!!!
- Written in front of a not-so-live audience @ 411studios in California
Opening Segment - Introduction
Hello, and welcome to the season three premiere of 411mania's Vicious TV News Wrap. I took a much needed summer vacation from writing at 411mania to focus on working. The conclusion I reached while working is – WORKING SUCKS!!! God, I hate having to work a stupid job, but the Vicious One needs his $$$ to keep my DVD player happy. While I was out of action, a young superstar by the name of Ben Piper took over the TV News Wrap. Ben did an excellent job of taking over the hosting duties of yours truly and I am very proud of what a great writer he has become. In other 411 news, I happily noticed the return of my partner in crime Steve Murrey to 411mania! Murrey is one of the TV news writing pioneers here at 411 and I'm glad to have him back on the team. Let's get back to tearing it up for 411mania TV! Let's get to our top story of the day…
Top Story
Let's Dance with the Stars… ABC has finally let the cat out of the bag by announcing the celebrity participants for their upcoming season of "Dancing with the Stars." The "celebrities" include former Spice Girl Melanie "Scary Spice" Brown, Jennie Garth (Beverly Hills 90210), supermodel Josie Maran, Sabrina Bryan ("The Cheetah Girls"), Marie Osmond, Jane Seymour, Wayne Newton, Helio Castroneves, Cameron Mathison, Albert Reed, Mark Cuban and Floyd Mayweather Jr. I think they're starting to stretch it when they come to naming "celebrities." I only recognize half of the names listed, but that has always been my complaint with the show since it started. However, the show has managed to stay a ratings juggernaut for ABC.
Random TV News
"Rescue Me" actor slams Denis Leary?
Jack McGee, who played Chief Jerry Reilly on "Rescue Me", made a few comments regarding the show's producer/star Denis Leary. McGee's character committed suicide in an early episode of season four and McGee thinks something was fishy about it. "My own true feeling is, I think the wrong character killed himself." The show, which is in its fourth season on FX, has dropped off in quality, in my opinion. Each episode feels flat and uninteresting, which is a shame because it used to be one of the most exciting programs on television. There are only two episodes left this season, so I'm doubtful it can make a quick turnaround by then.
Veronica Mars invades "Heroes"
Former "Veronica Mars" star Kristen Bell has landed a multi-episode deal to guest star on NBC's smash-hit "Heroes" this October. According to Variety.com, "Bell will play a sexy, mysterious woman tied to the alleged death of Peter (played by Milo Ventimiglia) and future of Claire (Hayden Panettiere). It is unclear whether her character will be a hero or a villain." Rumor has it that Bell has been offered a guest spot on ABC's "Lost." No word on whether she has accepted it.
Posh gets UGLY
Victoria Beckham, a.k.a. "Posh Spice", has accepted an offer to appear on ABC's hit show "Ugly Betty" in the fall. Beckham will be appearing as herself during an episode where Vanessa Williams' character gets married. Beckham could use the work after her reality show was savaged by the critics. But who cares? Posh Spice is still a babe!
NBC versus iTunes On August 31st, NBC announced that they would not renew their contract with Apple sell their shows on iTunes. NBC's contract expires in December, which then led to Apple deciding not to sell any of NBC's programming before the fall season begins. Apple accused NBC of wanting to sell their shows on iTunes for up to $4.99 each! However, NBC disputes this charge by stating that they wanted to offer special promotions. For example, if you buy "Evan Almighty" on iTunes, you would get an episode of "The Office" for free. But the good news is that you can still download all of the upcoming seasons of pre-existing shows on iTunes until December. Unfortunately, new programs like "Bionic Woman" and "Chuck" will not be offered at all.
New TV-on-DVD Today
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia seasons 1 and 2 (PICK OF THE WEEK)
30 Rock season 1
Bosom Buddies season 2
Desperate Housewives season 3
Dirty Jobs Collection 1
I Dream of Jeannie season 4
Nip/Tuck season 4
Prison Break season 2
Really Big Things
Robot Chicken season 2
Rules of Engagement season 1
The Black Donnellys complete series
The Office season 3
The Real Housewives of OC season 1
Viciously Ridiculous
It's now time for the most ridiculous items of the TV world this week. First up…
Clay Aiken and Kellie Pickler will be competing in a celebrity themed episode of FOX's "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?" which is set to air during November sweeps. Other celebrities scheduled to compete on the game show are Regis Philbin, Billy Bush from "Access Hollywood," Tony Hawk and Miss America Lauren Nelson.
Disney's "High School Musical 2" managed to become the highest rated program on cable television ever? I heard it was popular, but the huge rating caught me off by surprise.
Finally, I recently came across a promo for "Cavemen" on ABC. What were they thinking? But one of my main rules when it comes to television shows is to never JUDGE a show before I have seen it. They should bring in Talia Shire to be the psychologist for the cavemen like in the commercial. Let's hope it doesn't suck.
The Vicious TV Babe of the Week Name: Victoria Beckham TV Appearances: "Victoria Beckham: Coming to America" and "Ugly Betty"
The Wrap-Up
Okay, my old friends, that's all for this week's edition of the TV News Wrap. Let us hope that season three of the TV News Wrap will be the best yet. See you next Tuesday.
Credits
Executive Producers: Ashish Pabari, Scott Rutherford & Leonard Hayhurst
Original Concept by Scott Rutherford & Steve Vicious
ABC has finally let the cat out of the bag by announcing the celebrity participants for their upcoming season of "Dancing with the Stars." The "celebrities" include former Spice Girl Melanie "Scary Spice" Brown, Jennie Garth (Beverly Hills 90210), supermodel Josie Maran, Sabrina Bryan ("The Cheetah Girls"), Marie Osmond, Jane Seymour, Wayne Newton, Helio Castroneves, Cameron Mathison, Albert Reed, Mark Cuban and Floyd Mayweather Jr. I think they're starting to stretch it when they come to naming "celebrities." I only recognize half of the names listed, but that has always been my complaint with the show since it started. However, the show has managed to stay a ratings juggernaut for ABC. 
On August 31st, NBC announced that they would not renew their contract with Apple sell their shows on iTunes. NBC's contract expires in December, which then led to Apple deciding not to sell any of NBC's programming before the fall season begins. Apple accused NBC of wanting to sell their shows on iTunes for up to $4.99 each! However, NBC disputes this charge by stating that they wanted to offer special promotions. For example, if you buy "Evan Almighty" on iTunes, you would get an episode of "The Office" for free. But the good news is that you can still download all of the upcoming seasons of pre-existing shows on iTunes until December. Unfortunately, new programs like "Bionic Woman" and "Chuck" will not be offered at all. 
