NBC Renews ‘Friday Night Lights’
Posted on April 3, 2008
Friday Night Lights has officially been renewed by NBC in their early “in-front” presentation, which details the network’s 2008-09 line-up.
Rumours had been circulating for a while about a potential deal with DirecTV, but the drama is set to return to NBC on Fridays as a midseason replacement after first-run episodes air on DirecTV in October. The third season will consist of thirteen episodes.
Meanwhile, starting from the fall, Chuck and Heroes will air on Mondays followed by new drama My Own Worst Enemy, starring Christian Slater as a father who’s also unknowingly a spy. With Kath & Kim and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit snuggling on Tuesdays, Knight Rider has been scheduled for Wednesdays at 8PM on the same night as renewed Lipstick Jungle.
My Name Is Earl, 30 Rock, and The Office keep their Thursday slots, as an Office untitled spin-off will follow immediately afterwards along with ER. The line-up doesn’t see any mention of Scrubs. Finally, Crusoe and Life will run on Fridays, sandwiching Deal or No Deal.
Hannigan for ‘Buffy’ Reunion at PaleyFest
Posted on February 23, 2008
According to the Paley Center website, How I Met Your Mother star Alyson Hannigan, who played witch Willow Rosenberg in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is the latest person set to reunite with her old cast members at the PaleyFest Buffy reunion on March 20.
This follows the news that Sarah Michelle Gellar (the titular lead Buffy Summers) and Charisma Carpenter (once-snobby cheerleader Cordelia Chase) have also booked their places at the event, while sources are saying that David Boreanaz, who portrayed vampire Angel, will film a special message to the fans to make up for his absence due to family commitments.
Panelists already confirmed to be showing up are Amber Benson, Nicholas Brendon, Emma Caulfield, Eliza Dushku, Seth Green, James Marsters, Michelle Trachtenberg, and the mastermind behind it all, Joss Whedon. Buffy the Vampire Slayer ran for seven seasons before it ended in 2003, consisting of a total of 144 episodes, and spawned an Angel spin-off that lasted five years.
Other shows making an appearance at the annual festival, which runs for two weeks from March 14 to March 27 at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, include freshmen series Chuck, Dirty Sexy Money, Gossip Girl, Mad Men, and Pushing Daisies, as well as struggling NBC drama Friday Night Lights.
NBC Renews ‘Chuck’, ‘Life’, ‘Heroes’
Posted on February 14, 2008
NBC execs Ben Silverman and Marc Graboff announced this week that freshman series Chuck and Life, as well as their top-rated drama Heroes, have been picked up for the 2008-09 season, following the end to the strike. All three shows will not return this season, but will prepare for a relaunch in the fall.
“We are thrilled to be bringing back the high-energy dramas Chuck and Life for next season,” commented Silverman. “Additionally, we will be saving and re-launching our number one drama and most successful franchise, Heroes, so it will run in all original episodes in the fourth quarter.”
Graboff added, “These pickups are a sign of our confidence in these quality series and will allow the respective producers to get a head start on their creative arcs for next season.”
Chuck and Life have been given a thirteen-episode order — with the possibility of a full season if viewing figures remain respectable — while the third season of Heroes, whose second volume “Generations” averaged 13,07 million viewers (down 9% from its Season One figure of 14.37 million), is expected to be longer than the traditional twenty-two episode run. Chuck and Life averaged 8.68 million and 8.11 million viewers respectively over the course of their first seasons.
This news does not bode well for NBC’s other freshman dramas, Journeyman and Bionic Woman, as they look even more certain to be axed.
WGA Strike Over
Posted on February 13, 2008
After fourteen long and hard weeks, WGA members have voted to end the strike that started all the way back in November 5, with a resounding 92.5% for it (some 3,500 for and 283 against). This vote comes after the WGA announced that they had a tentative deal with the AMPTP over the weekend. The deal is set to be ratified within the next ten to twelve days.
“The strike is over”, said WGA West president Patric Verrone in an LA press conference. “Our membership has voted and writers can go back to work. This was not a strike we wanted but one we had to conduct in order to win jurisdiction and establish appropriate residuals for writing in new media and on the Internet.”
The deal will see specific residual rates in new media for the writers. They are set to receive 0.36% for the first 100,000 television show downloads for Internet sales, and 0.7% afterwards. And for episodes streamed on an ad-supported website, 2% of residuals will go towards the writers after the initial streaming window is closed.
Now that writers are going back to work as early as today, what does that mean for your favourite shows? Well, rejoice if you’re a Lost fan. Producer Carlton Cuse told Variety, “We’ll have to compress some of the storytelling we planned for this season, and that may not be a bad thing. Damon and I feel like we know how we can finish it off and still make it a really, really great story.” An extra five episodes are likely to be filmed, ending the fourth season with thirteen. Not too shabby.
Most of the veteran shows are set to be going back into production too, including the CSIs, Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, House, Smallville, and Supernatural with an estimated four to six episodes for each. Heroes, however, will wait until the fall to launch its third volume entitled ”Villains”. Prison Break’s future has not yet been determined, while the seventh season of 24 looks like it’ll be launching on January 2009. Half-hour comedies like 30 Rock and How I Met Your Mother have the advantage of being able to shoot potentially up to nine or ten episodes before the season ends.
A lot of the freshman programs, though, will be saved for a relaunch in the fall, Pushing Daisies (whose renewal for the second season was announced last week by ABC), Dirty Sexy Money, and Chuck being the main ones. Gossip Girl and half-hour long The Big Bang Theory are the two confirmed exceptions right now. Bionic Woman, Big Shots, and Journeyman amongst a few others aren’t expected to shoot any new episodes ever. In one word, “axed”.
With the time it takes to write, film, and produce, post-strike episodes will probably air during April and May — in time for the May sweeps.
Photo by Brad Herman
Top 30 Television Episodes of 2007: 10-1
Posted on January 24, 2008
10. Gossip Girl – The Wild Brunch (Season 1, Episode 2)
“The Wild Brunch” is proof that you don’t need a whole season to establish a bunch of characters who are likeable and full of depth. After just two episodes, I already find myself hooked on the show and deciding who I like and who I hate. “Hate” is such a strong word, though, because each character falls in the grey area, even if some are in it deeper than others. The usually innocent Jenny reeks of desperation as she tries to be accepted into Blair’s posh inner circle, whereas Serena genuinely wants to make amends for running away all those months ago after she slept with best friend Blair’s boyfriend. Even the misogynistically portrayed Chuck has a more vulnerable side behind his scheming and constant lust for girls. Though all the punches, spilled secrets, and top-notch drama – that happens before we even hit noon, by the way – is fantastically engrossing in its own way, it’s surprising that we care so much about these core characters after such a short amount of time.
9. Entourage – Welcome to the Jungle (Season 4, Episode 1)
Just when you thought Entourage might have peaked too early after a disappointing second half of Season 3 (this seems to be a trend – Grey’s, I’m looking at you), they pull it all back in the premiere of their latest season with a terrific, refreshing twist. Set as a behind-the-scenes documentary, the episode sees actor Vince, first-time producer Eric, and eccentric and incredibly foul-mouthed director Billy Walsh shoot Vince’s latest film, Medellin. From Billy’s procrastinating to Drama’s three seconds of fame in the climax of the movie, “Welcome to the Jungle” is packed full of laughs and definitely well worth watching, even if you’ve never seen an Entourage episode before.
8. Pushing Daisies – The Fun in Funeral (Season 1, Episode 3)
For those who don’t know, Pushing Daisies is about Ned, a pie-maker whose touch can bring the dead back to life. As Jim Dale puts it, “First touch, life. Second touch, dead again. Forever.” This gift comes with a second rule, that if the ‘living dead’ is not put back to rest after sixty seconds, someone else will take their place. And so, in the critically acclaimed pilot, after he couldn’t bring himself to put his childhood sweetheart, Chuck, to rest permanently, the funeral director ended up in the obituary. Unusual as it may be, since I haven’t seen it appear in any other 2007 list, I actually preferred “The Fun in Funeral”, in which Chuck discovers the sacrifice for her second life (”accidental involuntary manslaughter” – ha!). Don’t get me wrong, the pilot was one of the most original I’ve seen in a long, long time, but this particular episode trumps in comedy, heartfelt moments, and styIe. What better to emphasize the totally awesome fairytale-esque setting by having Ned get into a Jedi fight and end up victorious, dressed like Chuck’s Prince Charming with a big ass velvet curtain wrapped around him like a toga?
7. Grey’s Anatomy – Wishin’ and Hopin’ (Season 3, Episode 14)
If you recall what I said in my commentary for “Haunt You Every Day” (#17), you’ll notice that I called it the “best episode of Grey’s since mid-Season 3″. Now I’m saying that “Wishin’ and Hopin’” is the best episode of Grey’s since the Season 2 finale. (Oh, Denny. We still miss you.) Here, Meredith’s mother, who has Alzheimer’s, wakes up lucid. Though this may be good news for some, even if it is just temporary, Meredith has to endure her mother’s harsh words that she’s a disappointment and nothing more. Meredith takes the rest of the episode to gather up the strength to respond to her, telling her that she hopes that maybe in five years time, there will be a cure. “And you and I will have another chance to get to know each other. You’ll have a chance to get to know me – to see that I am not even remotely ordinary.” “You remind me of my daughter”, the once great Ellis Grey replies. Sniff, I hate this show sometimes.
6. Supernatural – What Is and What Should Never Be (Season 2, Episode 20)
All you Jensen Ackles fans who got high after reading my praise for him in “All Hell Breaks Loose, Part I” (#13) can prepare themselves for another dose, because he is equally stellar here. “What Is and What Should Never Be” sees Dean in an alternate reality – one where his mother didn’t die that terrible night. Also in this world, Jessica is alive and well, and Sam, bless him, is a wimp and doesn’t know a thing about hunting. Every time Dean got himself attached to this reality, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. When he hugged his mother in relief, when he was genuinely happy after Sam and Jessica announce their engagement, even when he was doing something simple like mowing the lawn and appreciating being normal, though I was happy for him, I dreaded the moment he snapped back into the real world. I’m not exaggerating when I say that Ackles pretty much nails each scene brilliantly. And when Dean realises he has to go back – dammit, Jensen – that was heartbreaking.
5. Heroes – Company Man (Season 1, Episode 17)
To sum up “Company Man” in one sentence, it’s an episode Lost would be excessively proud of, and that’s saying a lot. Flashbacks detailing the mysterious and ambiguous Mr. Bennet’s life working for the Company are interweaved with present day events, where Matt and radioactive Ted take the whole Bennet family hostage, believing that the man with the horn-rimmed glasses holds the key to their powers. But, underneath the hard front HRG has been putting on – attempting to execute invisible Claude, amongst other shady actions – he’s ultimately a family man. He loves Claire as if she really is her biological daughter, and he shows that at the end of the episode in a really touching and teary moment, where he’s prepared to go to incredible lengths and get shot with part of his memory wiped to ensure her safety. Even without the heart-wrenching scenes that “Company Man” pulls off, the episode is packed of incredibly intense drama (the standoff where Matt shoots Claire stands out amongst other almost equally exciting scenes) and superb special effects, especially for television.
4. Veronica Mars – The Bitch Is Back (Season 3, Episode 20)
Everything comes full circle in Veronica Mars‘ swansong. Veronica’s reputation is tarnished once again after someone secretly filmed and released a sex tape of her and Piz, and her father (Enrico Colantoni at his best) returns to being a nobody, having destroyed evidence and effectively lost the sheriff race to protect his daughter. I’ve been vocal about Veronica Mars‘ sub-par final season, but her seething hunt to find who was guilty for that tape was riveting. I can’t have been the only one who was stunned when she came across that massive portrait painting of Lily. Who knew the case would end up with the Kanes? That, and Veronica confronting the ever-so-optimistic Dick were some of the highlights not just of the episode, but of the entire season too. But the show ends focusing on Keith and Veronica’s close father-daughter relationship – which has remained one of the best aspects throughout – and the final shots of Veronica pointlessly voting for her father at the ballot and walking away in the rain is nigh perfect.
3. Lost – Through the Looking Glass (Season 3, Episodes 22/23)
The Futon Critic two weeks ago listed this episode as its number one of 2007. Though it fell a little short of achieving the same feat with me (that said, its #3 placement should be more than enough to show how much I loved this episode), he accurately sums up why the season finale was so darn impressive: “In my first look at the show in 2004, I talked a lot about how it was rare to find a show that tickled your imagination, that pushed the boundaries of what you think television can and can’t do. This episode – nearly three years later – touched on those exact same feelings. After all, could you believe that they would actually get off the island at the end of season three – let alone not realize you’d already spent two hours exploring Jack’s post-island experiences?” Couldn’t have put it better myself, Mr. Futon. Who was in the casket? Who was Kate going back to? Why does Jack’s life suck so much after they get off the island? And that’s on top of Charlie’s predicted death, which was executed incredibly well. His last act was passing on a message to Desmond, “NOT PENNY’S BOAT“, which of course, raises the question that if it’s not Penny, who is coming ashore? It’s not long now before Season 4 arrives, and I for one can’t wait for it.
2. Chuck – Pilot (Season 1, Episode 1)
This may be a bold statement, but I’m willing to say that the pilot episode of Chuck is right up there with Lost’s back in 2004. I didn’t know what to expect going into this show, yet by the end of the hour, I had no other words than, fittingly, “awesome” (as my sister will attest to). Dammit, any pilot that makes me shout “holy crap” out loud while giggling like a toddler deserves to be in my top three! Entertaining, full of laughs, yet touching, Chuck hit all the right notes. Not only is the title character a simple geek with no superpowers, weapons, or anything that gives him the upper hand against some of the most dangerous people out there – someone we can relate to – but the show is full of other quirky key characters (Adam Baldwin’s John Casey being my favourite – Baldwin delivers each line incredibly spot on). Though Chuck hasn’t come anywhere near to living up to my expectations after the pilot episode, first impressions were fantastic and more than warrants its high placement on the list. I tell you, you’d be hard-pressed to find another show that has the bumbling lead defuse bombs with porn.
1. Dexter – Resistance Is Futile (Season 2, Episode 9)
I could go on forever about how the episode carries some of the most suspenseful moments of the entire year on television. I could talk about how it continually manages to be funny, an impressive feat for a show about a serial killer. But it takes just five minutes at the end to shoot a top ten episode up into the number one slot. Let’s not beat around the bush here, the protagonist is a vigilante murderer, an antihero. Granted, he only kills fellow murderers who have escaped the law, but the fact still remains that he’s a killer, something you can’t justify. Yet, at the same time, Dexter (the always sublime Michael C. Hall) is very much a likeable character, and one who’ve we rooted for since the pilot.
Where do our loyalties lie, then, when Doakes (excellently played by Erik King) – a hard-working member of the police force and arguably the one in the “hero” role here – finally finds out the truth about Dexter, catching him red-handed with a victim’s body parts, and has him at gunpoint? Who do we cheer on? How are we supposed to react? In those few moments, I didn’t dare turn away from the television. In those few moments, I didn’t even try to predict what would happen; I just wanted to watch. And when Dexter – after being shot in the leg – gets his co-worker in a sleeper hold and imprisons him in a cage, when Doakes wakes up as Dexter runs out and shouts at the top of his lungs, “YOU’RE GONNA HAVE TO FUCKING KILL ME, MORGAN”, each day you wait for next week to come becomes so bloody slow.
Top 30 Television Episodes of 2007: 30-21
Posted on January 8, 2008
30. Prison Break - Chicago (Season 2, Episode 16)
While Prison Break’s “Go” would have been in the running to be the top episode of 2006, a slightly weaker sophomore season followed by a hit-or-miss third means that their only appearance on this list is “Chicago”, which barely makes the cut. But that’s not to say this is a sub-par episode, because it isn’t. In fact, it’s got plenty of the same drama and suspense that got us hooked when Michael Scofield first got himself incarcerated at Fox River, as Michael and company try to escape the authorities’ grasp on a sweet train. You know they had to have a police car roadblock to smash through! And of course, this was the episode where mentally unstable Haywire became the third of the Fox River Eight to bite it. Our hopes of him in the unlikely event of making Amsterdam were shot down when Mahone persuaded him to jump.
29. Doctor Who - Blink (Season 3, Episode 10)
Admittedly, I don’t watch a lot of Doctor Who. I was a big fan in the short yet sweet Christopher Eccleston era, but once Rose Tyler left, I gave up on it. “Blink” turned out to be the best episode this year that I certainly didn’t intend on watching. In another Doctor-light forty-five minutes, Sally Sparrow – just your average person – finds herself trying to retrieve the TARDIS and survive against the Weeping Angels. Look away, and these Angels, seemingly ordinary statues, come to life. And once they touch you, they’ll chuck you back forty years, leaving you stranded in the 1960s. What “Blink” does right is make the atmosphere fittingly creepy. The old, dilapidated house, for starters, is the perfect setting for the final showdown, and it’s topped by chilling, suspenseful music as the unlikely hero and her boyfriend try to refrain from blinking, lest the Angels edge closer…and closer…and closer…
28. Gossip Girl - Roman Holiday (Season 1, Episode 11)
It’s been a while since I had a guilty pleasure, but Gossip Girl ticks all the boxes you could ask for in a teen soapy drama. Genuine characters? Check. Believable relationships? Check. Fights and stories that veer away from clichés? Double check. And “Roman Holiday” sums up everything I like about this show right now. Each character continues to have a surprising amount of depth. Blair (excellently played by Leighton Meester) in particular shines: on one end, she’s gutted that she can’t seem to get her father’s attention, yet on the other hand, her threat to Vanessa with cuticle scissors, telling her to back away from her best friend’s boyfriend, is totally awesome. Also worth noting are Serena and Dan, spending their first Christmas together, whose panic at finding the perfect Christmas present for each other is really endearing and shows how serious they are about this relationship, even though they come from completely different backgrounds.
27. Heroes - Cautionary Tales (Season 2, Episode 11)
With an exceptional team of writers, you would have banked Heroes on delivering an equally great sophomore season to follow up their first, but an uninspired and slow-paced first half left many loyal fans disappointed and criticising the direction of the show. Things did eventually take a turn for the better, though, and “Cautionary Tales”, the ninth of the eleven chapters in the second volume, was the epitome of the decent run of episodes that followed. This is the Heroes we want to see more of. Each subplot progresses a tremendous amount – from Hiro’s (and our) discovery that it was his personal hero, Kensei, who killed his father, to Mohinder fulfilling yet another Mendez painting when he actually shoots Bennet in the friggin’ eye! Oh, but it’s not over yet! The Company then uses Claire’s regenerative blood to revive him! What the heck!
26. Private Practice - In Which Sam Gets Taken For A Ride (Season 1, Episode 7)
Yadda yadda yadda, as interesting the mini-hostage situation was that Sam (yo, Taye!) found himself in, and as interesting as it was to see David Sutcliffe (Christopher on Gilmore Girls) making a guest appearance, I think you’re all missing the point as to why this episode squirmed its way into the thirty. So let’s run through it. Addison and Pete finally agree to a date. Cooper and Violet finally agree to sex (albeit casual with no strings attached, not the kind Cooper might want from the woman he fancies). But wait, by the end of the episode, it’s Sam and Naomi, divorced and bitter with each other, who end up getting some action. What’s up with that?! Hey…wait a minute. This is starting to feel like Grey’s Anatomy. And it’s good!
25. Grey’s Anatomy - Crash Into Me, Part I (Season 4, Episode 9)
Speaking of Grey’s, it seems that the show has bounced back from that blip at the end of last season. In the Mega Disaster of the Season™, an ambulance crashes into another right in front of Seattle Grace. What ensues is everyone crying their eyes out when Stan saves fellow paramedic Ray’s life, only to die before he can hear the Chief call him a hero. Also involved in the Mega Disaster of the Season™ is a white supremacist with a giant-ass swastika tattoo on his stomach, and faced with saving his life and saving her failing marriage, Bailey (who’s black) chooses to perform the surgery. Finally, Seth Green’s in it, which is awesome. Slightly underused, but still awesome. That screencap right there? His artery just blew, drenching intern Lexie with all his blood. Cue the “To Be Continued” card.
24. Day Break - What If He’s Free (Season 1, Episode 10)
Ah, Taye Diggs. We can’t get enough of you. I was disappointed when barely anyone stuck with Groundhog Day-influenced Day Break, leading to its demise, but let’s not dwell on the past. “What If He’s Free” continues what made the show worth watching. I honestly don’t recall another show in which the twists actually make sense as much as they do instead of using them for the sake of stirring things up and keeping the story interesting. For Day Break to come in and do that every week is bloody impressive. So, remember when Hopper’s landlord told him that the two plumbers still haven’t fixed the leak all the way back in the pilot? Turns out that they were Fencik and Buchalter. And the hostile lady artist whose address was found in Torres’ wallet? Well, she wasn’t the next target but actually the serial murderer’s sister. But the clincher was – even though Hopper solved Garza’s murder and was intent on watching the sunrise with Rita – the day repeated once more. The look on his devastated face said it all.
23. Supernatural - The Kids Are Alright (Season 3, Episode 2)
This is one creepy episode. “The Kids Are Alright”, no doubt taking some inspiration from Doctor Who’s “The Empty Child”, explores the lore of changelings. I don’t think I need to say much more other than to look at the screencap and imagine that thing tailing you around like a magnet, monotonously repeating, “mommy, can I have some ice-cream?” Believe it or not, there’s also some excellent humour embedded in this episode. See, while he’s in town, Dean visits a woman he had sex with eight, nine years ago. Now she’s raising a son who is also around that age. It’s not that original and it’s been done before in other shows, but I couldn’t help laughing the way this little kid shared the same love of heavy rock, the same hairdo, the same fashion sense – even the same mannerisms as Dean does. And if the creepiness and the humour combined still isn’t good enough for you, there’s more in the form of a massive reveal: Ruby’s a frickin’ demon!
22. How I Met Your Mother - Showdown (Season 2, Episode 20)
Neil Patrick Harris once again steals the show and more than deservedly earns an Emmy nomination with this episode as the sharply dressed Barney Stinson. Though the A-plot – Marshall and Lily trying to prove that they aren’t co-dependant and can sleep apart – was funny enough to keep me happy, Barney’s appearance on The Price Is Right, believing Bob Barker to be his father, had me laughing in stitches. His competitive nature and his determination to do his “father” proud were both endearing and absolutely hilarious at the same time. Sure, it didn’t quite reach the heights of 2006’s critically acclaimed “Slap Bet” (let’s go to the mall!), but it’s darn close. And whoever thought of the “night night” tape was an absolute genius.
21. Chuck - Chuck Versus the Truth (Season 1, Episode 8 )
I was let down by Chuck’s middle stint, so I was pleasantly surprised when “Chuck Versus the Truth” completely exceeded my expectations and turned out to be one of the funniest and most touching episodes yet. (Thankfully, since then, Chuck has managed to continue delivering solid episodes.) With Chuck, Sarah, and Casey all affected by truth serum, the story strikes a fine balance between humour (Chuck to Casey: “Your jaw was chiselled by Michelangelo himself.” Ha!) and developing Sarah’s hidden feelings for our leading man – finally confirming what we already know. Traditionally, these sort of situations get complicated with another girl, so who else than to cast Rachel Bilson of The O.C. to guest-star as the hot, quirky, loveable, and deli-owning Lou? Josh Schwartz, you’re the man.