Two Tivos To Paradise 4.18.08
Posted by Al Norton on 04.18.2008
More Lost & Grey's Anatomy this year, an update on the new 90210, cast changes at CSI & the Law and Orders, Jimmy Kimmel does live commercials, American Idol thoughts, raves for The Office, tons of news and notes, the TV Pick of the Week; all this and more in Al Norton's Two Tivos To Paradise
Hello Friends. I had a fun weekend at Fenway, seeing the Sox take two of three from the Yankees, although to be honest the single best performance of the series was Chien-Ming Wang's complete game outing on Friday night.
My Monday turned unexpectedly bad when I found out that Boston NOW, the paper I had served as the TV Editor for since April of 2007, had ceased publication. While circulation and ad revenue were right on track, the paper's financial backers were based in Iceland, where the economy is apparently not doing particularly well, so the presses will run no more. On to significantly more exciting stuff…
The biggest news in these parts is that Mrs. Tivo and I found out on Thursday morning that our twins are one boy…and one "looks like a girl." We'll know for sure on that second one in a couple of weeks, but let's get those name suggestions going!
Ain't no stoppin' us now, we're on the news.
But There Never Seems To Be Enough Time To Do The Things You Want To Do Once You Find Them
Fans of Lost and Grey's Anatomy got good news this week when it was confirmed that both shows would add an additional hour to their upcoming finales. TVGuide.com was the first to report that Lost producers were in discussion with ABC about fitting in another 60 minutes of the show, but when they insisted the final two hours of the season needed to be shown back-to-back, the network reached out to Grey's to double their finale in order to balance their schedule, which now looks like this:
Thursday May 15th
8:00 pm Ugly Betty
9:00 pm Grey's Anatomy
10:00 pm Lost (finale part one)
Thursday May 29th
8:00 pm Lost (rerun of finale part one)
9:00 pm Lost (2 hour finale)
What is not to like about another hour of Lost? And to be honest, I am not complaining about an extra hour of Grey's, which is also one of my favorite shows. I am not so much confused as interested in how writers take what they were intending on being one hour and turn it into two, although with a show like Lost I imagine there are simply never enough minutes to get in everything they want to.
Nothing Changes But The Faces, The Names, And The Trends
The CW's planned Beverly Hills, 90210 spin-off was in the news this week in a big way, with the most buzz focused on the possibility that Jennie Garth was going to reprise her role as Kelly Taylor in the new series, with her character returning to her alma matter as a teacher. The speculation was fueled by the announcement she had dropped out of the CBS pilot (My Best Friend's Girl) she had been working on. In actual 90210 happenings, Rob Thomas is no longer in charge of the show-to-be as he is too busy running the ship on the two pilot scripts of his that were picked up by ABC (Cupid and Good Behavior), but he will stay on as an executive producer. Nip/Tuck's Annalyne McCord has become the second cast member signed up, joining Dustin Milligan, who starred in the CW's short-lived Runaway.
While I am once again going to be guilty of using the words "credibility" and "90210" in the same sentence, there is no question that getting Garth in the cast would go a long way towards getting the fans of the old show to give it a shot, and it also opens the door for other alum to stop by. As much of a fan of Thomas' as I am, it's probably a good thing for him to turn the reigns over to someone else since handling the production of one pilot is a full plate, let alone three. McCord is a pretty major hottie and based on her role on Nip/Tuck, she will be perfect as this new 90210's ultimate bitch.
I Still Don't Know What I Was Waiting For, And My Time Was Running Wild
Major cast changes this week at some of the biggest crime shows on TV, starting with Gary Dourdan announcing he was leaving CSI at the end of the season. Dourdan has portrayed Warrick since the show debuted in the fall of 2000 and is departing sometime between now and the May 15th season finale. NBC confirmed that Anthony Anderson would be Jeremy Sisto new partner on Law And Order, and that Anderson's character would be introduced this Wednesday in the episode that explains Jesse L Martin's exit. Law and Order: SVU also got a cast shake up when Diane Neal told producers she wouldn't reprise her role as ADA Casey Novak in the fall. And finally, TVGuide.com is reporting that one of the regulars characters on NCIS would not make it through the season.
I am not really a CSI guy but it's one of the most popular shows on TV and this is the second original cast members to leave in the last twelve months. Better news for fans of the show is that they have signed William Peterson to an extension and Marg Helgenberg and George Eades are expected to do the same shortly. Anderson joining the L & O cast was the worst kept secret in show business and there still has been no clarification if he is playing the same character he did on L & O: SVU. I think Anderson has incredible potential and with the right part – one that could harness his emotional volatility – could do extremely well on TV. I am a little worried about the sendoff Martin will get; he has done such a great job for them over the years that I hope they let his Detective Green depart with dignity. While SVU is looking to find a new ADA, they have confirmed that Stephanie March coming back as Alex Cabot is not something that is on the table.
Picture Yourself On A Boat In A River With Tangerine Trees And Marmalade Skies
Fox ordered a two hour movie/backdoor pilot for Virtuality, a new science fiction series from Battlestar Galactica executive producer Ronald D. Moore. The story follows a starship sent from earth on a 10 year flight to find a new solar system whose crew passes the time by playing in a virtual reality system that lets them have great adventures, going anywhere and being anyone. The journey hits a snag when a virus infects the system - possibly an act of sabotage – leaving the simulations taking some dark and unexpected turns. Moore wrote the pilot with fellow BSG'er Michael Taylor from an idea pitched by producers Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun, and Fox hopes to air in February 2009.
At this point of my devotion to all things BSG, Moore could announce a reality series about people playing sudoku and I would have that bad boy season passed in a heartbeat, let alone a show that seems to have some real potential like this; with the virtual reality part of the series, they can have stories that take place anywhere, making it a little less outer space and a little more action/drama. NBC actually passed on the show because they felt it was too sci-fi for them, but their loss is Fox's gain. I mean, a show about a virtual reality system the goes haywire and taps into people's greatest fears instead of their fantasies? I am not actually sure that's what happens, but even just as a single episode that would be cool.
Sleeping On A Planter At The Port Authority Waiting For My Bus To Come
Starting next month The Jimmy Kimmel Show will feature live commercials, something not seen regularly on TV in decades. Live ads were once the standard for TV, with hosts pitching everything from cars to cigarettes to dog food, but have not been seen much since Johnny Carson left The Tonight Show. No specific advertisers have officially signed on but look for there to be a lot of interest in spots that mix product placement with Kimmel's style of humor.
I love this idea and find it kind of strange that it's taken this long for the concept to come back (Jay Leno did one last year but it was a one-time thing). Not that I am looking for more commercials on TV but if there are ways to make them more entertaining I am all for it. I am a huge Howard Stern fan and the live commercials he has done over the years have been best part of some of the shows, and while Kimmel is no Stern, I am guessing a large part of these will be unscripted, with him just seeing what happens based on the vibe of that night's show.
Empty Places, What Are We Living For? Abandoned Places, I Guess We Now the Score
Both Bravo and Lifetime revealed numerous new shows in development this week, with the link between the two being Project Runway, which, provided the current lawsuit from NBC Universal fails, will air this summer on the former network before jumping to the latter in the fall.
New Lifetime Shows Project Runway: season six of the Peabody Award winning reality series Project Pygmalion: from the producers of PR, it takes average woman and tries to high society them up Trump Tower: a scripted soap opera set in the New York high rise and narrated by The Donald himself. Mistresses: a drama about a group of friends who move from college life to adulthood
New Bravo Shows Date My Ex: reality show where ex's set up their old mates with new ones Real Housewives of New Jersey: the third of the Real Housewives franchise The Rachel Zoe Project: a documentary series about the celebrity stylist.
In addition, Bravo has new season of the following returning favorites: Flipping Out, Project Runway, Shear Genius, Million Dollar Listing, Top Chef, Top Design, Tim Gunn's Guide To Style, The Millionaire Matchmaker, Real Housewives of New York & Orange Country, and Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.
So many of you may be wondering why a site the skews so male is writing about shows that are dominated by female viewers, but that's exactly why; if anyone of you ever want to get out of your parent's basements and actually talk to a girl, watching one of these networks will provide you with some quality small talk subject matter. Clearly I am kidding but there are some good shows here, in particular anything from the Top family as well as Flipping Out.
Lifetime had a pretty great week with the above shows, the announcement that they would have a High Def channel by the end of the summer, and that Saturday's debut The Memory Keeper's Daughter was the highest rated movie on the network in 13 years. And it got even better when they signed a deal to adapt two of best selling author Patricia Cornwall's novels.
It'd be nice if Bravo branched out a bit, using their existing shows to go in some different directions, but clearly they are set on dancing with the ones that brought them; their new shows are either new versions of their current hits or feature alumni from their current line up in the cast.
And With Your Hair Combed Right And Your Pants Fit Tight, It's Gonna Be All Right
Season 7 of American Idol is actually season one when it comes to my watching. All season long I will be providing a weekly diary of the action as well as covering any AI related news items. Last Thursday's results show easily won the 8:00 hour with 19.57 million, down 19% from the previous results show. Tuesday's final seven episode pulled in 23 million, enough to easily win the night but the show's lowest Tuesday outing since 2003. 22.74 million were in front of their TV's for Wednesday's results episode.
TUESDAY
It's down to the final seven on the 2008 edition of American Idol, tonight guided by the hand of pop chart queen Mariah Carey. Let's get to it...
-Ok, let me just get this out at the start and move on...Mariah Carey has an AMAZING rack...Now I can proceed with my regular level of professionalism
-Mariah and The Archuleta Youth Movement are a perfect couple, soul-less mates if you will. On a related note, there is no truth to the rumor that David is the final cylon. He is busting out the leather pants tonight, though, and that's got to count for something.
-Carly is doing Without You, which was pretty solid but nothing spectacular. Simon seems to be personally disappointed in her these past few weeks.
-Holy Crap, did they just show Dennis from Head of the Class in the audience?
-I hope the screenwriters for My Best Friend's Wedding are getting a check for Made of Honor.
-Syesha is doing Vanishing, a song I am not familiar with (maybe that means Our Lady of Peace did a cover version?)...Mariah seems to be taking her mentoring pretty seriously, and I mean that in a good way...Great performance by my girl, who should be in the final three with the Davids
-Brooke does Hero but not very well. I smell bottom three.
-Kristy has stuck around much longer than anyone would have given her credit for, the last couple of weeks on actual merit. Another decent week for her.
-It's a tribute to Mariah's voice that upon hearing these songs done by lesser performers, you realize that on paper they are mediocre compositions at best, only standing out when the words pass her lips...Of course, I've just insulted Mariah the songwriter, but I can live with it
-David's Always Be My Baby is the most interesting vocal of the night and one that cements his standing in the top 2
-Jason Castro actually comes through with his most complete vocal since Hallelujah, but he still should go home this week.
My bottom three would be Carly, Brooke, and Jason.
WEDNESDAY
-Words can not do justice to what Paula is wearing around her neck tonight. No, it's not a pearl necklace.
-Group sing, everybody!
-At least they are changing up how they reveal who is safe and who is in the bottom 3
-This week's Ford commercial is by far the worst of the year. Who are the ad wizards who came up with this one?
-Elliot Yamin is working the stage like he is in Vegas, and I don't mean that in a good way
-These phone calls continue to be really bizarre, the textbook definition of "filler"
-If a spaceship landed on earth and aliens turned on TV and watched Mariah Carey sing tonight and then were informed that she is the top charting solo act in history, what would they think about the overall quality level of music on our planet?
-Kristy Lee Cook goes home, which is probably the right move, although she really earned her keep the last few weeks. Jason continues to be the one in the group who really doesn't belong, and don't get me started on how Syesha ended up in the bottom 3 this week.
That Breakup We Had Has Left Me Lonesome And Sad
Never let it be said that I don't listen to my readers; in response to a number of emails, I am listing below all of the April return dates for your favorite shows as well as how many new episodes there are of each. An * is next to any show that will be airing on a new night. The list is in order of return:
But You Were Up To Your Old Tricks In Chapters Four Five And Six
All you need to know about the Nielsen's for the last week...CSI was last Thursday's most watched show with 19.94 million…The regular Thursday at 8 shows (Survivor, My Name Is Earl, 30 Rock) all took hits because of Fox's special AI episode…The Office and Scrubs returned with higher than usual ratings, but the same could not be said of ER, which was down 16% from the last pre-strike episode…Eli Stone was up 680K, a positive sign for this bubble drama. And even more positive sign was the 16% over average audience that the show got in it's special Sunday at 10 airing…Desperate Housewives returned to its lowest ever Sunday night numbers, although to put that in perspective, the 16 million strong audience was the largest of any show for the evening…Monk and PSYCH have not done well in their move to NBC, but some of the blame has to go to the network's poor advertising. It's as if they thought they were playing to the show's existing fan base, even though those fans have already seen these episodes…Monday was bad for everyone, with Dancing with the Stars winning the night but with numbers down 12% from last week. Bones returned with 1.25 million less people tuning in that it's last new episode. Other shows losing viewers were Samantha Who? (-1 million), Rules of Engagement (-15% from it's last new outing), and Medium (-1.1 million). The only show with good news for the night was One Tree Hill, which gave The CW its best 18-34 numbers for the Monday at 9 time slot ever…The season finale of The Biggest Loser matched a season high with 11.2 million, down only 4% from this winter's finale despite being up against AI…Hell's Kitchen seated 11.1 million, continuing the same capture % of it's AI lead-in for the third straight week…The DWTS results show drew 15 million…NCIS scored a strong 14.9 million…Criminal Minds dropped 250K from last week…Back To You and Till Death returned with just about the same numbers they left with…ABC's coverage of the Democratic Presidential Debate on Wednesday averaged 10.7 million over the two hours, winning at 8 pm…
All The Young Dudes Carry The News
Industry News, Notes, and Hot Rumors…Amy Acker has joined the cast of Joss Whedon's new Fox show Dollhouse in a recurring role. Also added to the credits is veteran TV character actor Harry Lennix...Comedic genius Albert Brooks is doing at least four episodes on Weeds this summer…In a follow up to a story from last week, Marcia Cross confirmed that the season finale of Desperate Housewives will take place five years in the future, although what's not clear is if the show would stay there when it returns in the fall. If series creator Marc Cherry plans on keeping the show on the air five more years, I assume he will jump back and then end the show in 2013 when it catches up with itself…Starting with the upcoming 17th cycle, Survivor will be available to be seen in high def…Two Tivos favorite Donal Logue has joined the cast of 1%, HBO's new drama set in the world of biker gangs. He will be a busy guy this fall as he also will be a regular on the second season of NBC's Life…Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden is the latest addition to CBS' The Tower…Sarah Chalke is in talks to reprise her How I Met Your Mother guest spot at least one more time this season…With rationale that included the bomb that was Secret Talents of the Stars and a similarity to NBC's upcoming Celebrity Circus, ABC announced that it was not moving forward on Circus of the Stars, which was due to air this summer…Jerry O'Connell has been cast as the male lead in the ABC pilot The Inn…Sam Rami's upcoming syndication series Wizard's First Rule got a show runner this week when they hired former X-Files (and current Supernatural) writer John Shiban to be in charge…CBS will debut Saturday Night Fights, it's foray into ultimate fighting, on May 31st…NY Times Bestselling author Jennifer Weiner signed a two year development deal with ABC to create and executive producer a new series. Her novel In Her Shoes was turned into a movie in 2005 but she is best known for her pop culture phenomenon Good In Bed<…I may have mentioned this sign of the apocalypse in an earlier column but CBS is planning a summer launch for Jingle, a new reality show where contestants write a theme song for a product and viewers vote for their favorite, which in turn gets used in an actual commercial…Some observers took CBS' decision to fill an hole in their line up with reruns of The Unit as a good sign that the show will return for a third season this fall…Cindy McCain (wife of Senator and Republican Presidential Nominee-to-be John McCain) will guest on The View on Monday, and then First Lady Laura Bush will host the 9:00 hour of The Today Show on Tuesday…
Turns Out Not Where But Who You're With That Really Matters
The top thing I watched since the last column went to press AKA The Best Of What's Around…While I know that it was not for everyone, last Thursday's episode of The Office was a truly amazing achievement in uncomfortable comedy. Dinner party episodes have been around for years, from The Mary Tyler Moore Show to Friends, but I don't recall anything that captured the awkwardness of spending time with a couple not getting along as well as this episode did. From scented candles to The Hunted to Taboo to the sliding glass doors to not wanting your beets in my mouth to my apartment is flooded, this was Curb Your Enthusiasm levels of ill-at-easeness but with the audience more invested in the characters. There clearly were not as many "laugh out loud" moments as some would have enjoyed but I don't think I would have changed a single minute.
People Say I'm Crazy Doing What I'm Doing. Well, They Give Me All Kinds Of Warnings To Save Me From Ruin
What's flashed before my eyes the last seven days…Here's a shock for you – I loved this week's Battlestar Galactica, and not just because it featured quite a bit of Grace Park exposure. I am fascinated by some of the cylons falling into the same trap humans did – trying to shut down their machines when they realize they have evolved – that led to the first cylon war. Also, what could be better than twice the Baltar as usual?!?!...While Earl will obviously eventually need to come out of his coma, the writers of My Name Is Earl are doing a great job with the current plot device, avoiding any semblance of a missed beat…I have no idea what the viewers of Rock The Cradle were thinking keeping Olivia Newton John's daughter around while jettisoning Eddie Money's surgically enhanced offspring. The host continues to single-handedly set the entire medium of television back decades…How I Met Your Mother gave some face time to Bob Odenkirk, which is ALWAYS a good thing…One Tree Hill returned with a very strong episode this week. Say what you will about the show but how many series would give an hour to character development? There was no real plot movement to speak of on Monday night but spending the 60 minutes getting a sense of where the character's heads were out was the kind of thing that explains why OTH's fan base is a dedicated as it is…Desperate Housewives was ok this week (at least they showed people going to church!) but I thought Gabby was pretty mean to Carlos, all things considered. I give Ricardo Chavira for selling the blindness like he was Curt Hennig; he never flinched when he walked into the over or when being hit by flying fruit…A strong bounce back episode for Boston Legal this week with an incredibly moving closing from James Spader and a very emotional performance from Candace Bergan…Rules of Engagement was as mildly entertaining as usual, with some great line readings by Patrick Warburton…Eli Stone has left me a bit teary eyed the last few weeks and seems to be gaining some critical and ratings momentum. I am really keeping my fingers crossed that it gets a second season…Week two of Step It Up and Dance was just as cheesy a train wreck as week one. How much do they pay Elizabeth Berkley for her 8 minutes of screen time each week?...Kurtwood Smith clearly had a lot of fun reprising his role as a FBI Profiler on Medium this week, and despite his character dying they seemed to open the door for more frequent appearances…Louie CK and Pamela Adlon, who starred in Lucky Louie, will re-team to write and play the leads in a new sitcom for CBS about a married couple…
TV Pick Of The Week
I am torn this week; obviously next Thursday's line up on ABC is pretty much the best thing out there (the returns of Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, and Lost) but I am going to go in a different direction and remind you that the NBA Playoffs begin this weekend, with some of the best match up's in a long, long time. Even if my hometown Boston Celtics hadn't surged back to the top of the league this year (and we all know that David Stern is drooling over the idea of a Celtics-Lakers finale), the Western Conference is perhaps as strong as it's ever been, and the East has it's own share of interesting series.
Eastern Conference Games
Boston Celtics (1) – Atlanta Hawks (8), Sun, 8:30 pm, TNT
Detroit Pistons (2) – Philadelphia 76'ers (7), Sun, 6 pm, TNT
Orlando Magic (3) – Toronto Raptors (6), Sun, 12:30 pm, TNT
Cleveland Cavaliers (4) – Washington Wizards (5), Sat, 12:30 pm, ESPN
Western Conference Games
LA Lakers (1) – Denver Nuggets (8), Sun, 3 pm, ABC
New Orleans Hornets (2) – Dallas Mavericks (7) Sat, 7 pm, ESPN
San Antonio Spurs (3) – Phoenix Suns (6), Sat, 3 pm, ABC
Utah Jazz (4) – Houston Rockets (5), Sat, 9:30 pm, ESPN
What's great is that about the level of play right now is that all the series in the West could go 7 games, and the only time in the East in danger of being swept is the Hawks.
Don't miss the NBA playoffs this weekend!
Two Tivos To Paradise, Weekly Update 30 Days, 30 Rock, Aliens In America, American Idol, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, Antique Roadshow, The Apprentice, Battlestar Galactica, Best Week Ever, Big Love, Bones, Boston Legal, Breaking Bad, Brothers And Sisters, Burn Notice, Chuck, The Closer, Criss Angel Mindfreak, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Deadliest Catch, Desperate Housewives, Destination Truth, Dirty Sexy Money, Entourage, Eureka, Everybody Hates Chris, Flipping Out, Ghost Hunters, Gossip Girl, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, The Hills, House, How I Met Your Mother, Jericho, Kid Nation, King Of Cars, Last Comic Standing, Law And Order, Law And Order: Criminal Intent, Law And Order: Special Victims Unit, Lost, Mad Men, Make Me A Supermodel, Medium, Miss Guided, Moonlight, My Name Is Earl, The New Adventures Of Old Christine, Next Food Network Star, Nip/Tuck, The Office, One Tree Hill. Project Runway, Pushing Daisies, Psych, Real Time With Bill Maher, The Real Hustle, Reaper, Rescue Me, The Riches, Rock the Cradle, Rules Of Engagement, Run's House, Samantha Who?, Saturday Night Live, Scrubs, Shark, Shear Genius, The Soup, Step It Up and Dance, Supernatural, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Top Chef, Top Design, Top This Party, Ugly Betty
People Love You When They Know You're Leaving Soon
Here ends another edition of Two Tivos To Paradise. We'll be back in 7 days with the rundown on all-things-television.
Have a great week, see you next Friday!
Feedback is encouraged at twotivostoparadise@yahoo.com as well via the comments section below.
Sources for this week's column include Daily Variety, Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, and Hollywood Reporter (plus the web sites for those publications) as well as Aintit.cool.com.
Not to nitpick but first round series now go to seven games - two more games to enjoy!
Posted By: Matt (Guest) on April 18, 2008 at 12:55 AM
"So many of you may be wondering why a site the skews so male is writing about shows that are dominated by female viewers, but that's exactly why; if anyone of you ever want to get out of your parent's basements and actually talk to a girl, watching one of these networks will provide you with some quality small talk subject matter. Clearly I am kidding..."
oh, i would say that you are pretty much dead on. this is advice that i would give to MP, JJ, beezy and whoever the douchebag is that keeps posting using my screen name.
As for BSG, i find it odd that so many people considered it weak. not only is your point about the cylons a good one, but there is also the Starbuck storyline, as well as the departure of Lee Adama from the Galactica. i am wondering what his new job is, and of course, who the final cylon model is...
sorry that your newspaper gig for Boston NOW fell through. if things get tough, come to Canada. we have tons of jobs in the west and we aren't nosediving into recession. ;p
Posted By: Darth Mortis (Registered) on April 18, 2008 at 02:37 AM
^^^Says the guy who posts an essay in every column on the site. Basement dweller irony or what??
Great column this week, Al, and I hope the boy/girl combo works out for you. Best of both worlds!!
Posted By: Jeff (Guest) on April 18, 2008 at 09:18 AM
whats the matter, Jeff, does your brain start to hurt when you read too much?
or do you just prefer the typical 'ZOMG (insert name/noun here) SUX' that the lower echelons of humanity tend to post here as 'witty retorts'?
Posted By: Darth Mortis (Registered) on April 18, 2008 at 09:57 AM
Am I the only person who hates Anthony Anderson? I just can't stand the guy. Even when I like him, I don't like him. Adding him to Law & Order very well may make me stop watching the original. I can't explain the hatred, it's just there.
Posted By: Nip/Suck (Guest) on April 19, 2008 at 05:23 PM
