TV.com put together a nice preview of what’s in store for us this summer on the tube.
“Weeds,” “Eureka,” “The Closer,” “True Blood” and “Leverage” are returning, while “Nurse Jackie,” “Hung,” and “Dark Blue” are just a sampling of the new shows that are debuting this summer.
It’s funny to think how vastly different Seth MacFarlane’s life would be right now had “Family Guy” not been revived from the dead. FOX would have never offered him a multi-million dollar development deal and a big chunk of their Sunday night primetime block, and he certainly wouldn’t have had the commercial backing from a company like Burger King to launch his own online series, “Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy.” Unfortunately, if there’s any indication that MacFarlane might be losing his comedic edge, this is it. While the collection of animated shorts is presented in the same vein as the cutaways from “Family Guy,” they mostly just feel like B-sides that never made the final cut. There are a few really good ones in the group (Wile E. Coyote finds Jesus after finally killing the Road Runner, Mario’s advances are squashed by the Princess, and Bob Dylan gets into a mumble fight with Tom Waits and Popeye backstage at his concert), but a majority of them are only giggle worthy. The shorts themselves are pretty harmless on their own, but when viewed in one sitting, they don’t work quite as well. Plus, the idea of having to pay for something that you can watch for free online is a pretty ridiculous concept, so unless you pray at the altar of MacFarlane, you’d be better off watching it the way it was meant to be seen.
Click to buy “Seth MacFarlane’s Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy”
– Fox released it’s fall schedule. “Dollhouse” was renewed and “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” wasn’t. President Kevin Reilly said it wasn’t an either/or situation, but that the bet on “Dollhouse” was a bet on its producer Joss Whedon. I want to hear from people who watched both shows — was “Dollhouse” better? Because “Terminator: TSCC” was damn good down the stretch. (On a side note, how long do you think it will take Summer Glau to find another role? Hint: Not long.)
– Fox prez Kevin Reilly is apparently a big fan of Tyler Labine (who plays Sock on “Reaper”). Labine is set to star in the comedy “Sons of Tuscon,” which debuts in January. Clearly, this is not good news for “Reaper” fans.
– Ponderously, ABC renewed “Scrubs,” which only plans to have Zach Braff for six episodes. What’s the point?
– NBC renewed “Chuck” for 13 episodes, but it came at a price. There were significant budget concessions, so fans might notice that parts of the supporting cast may disappear at times. I stopped watching early in the season because it was getting kind of silly (and that whole Chuck/Sarah dance was getting tiresome) — did it get significantly better down the stretch?
– According to creator Noah Hawley’s Twitter page, “The Unusuals” won’t be back for another season. However, CBS did renew “Cold Case” for another season.
– Fox has renewed “Bones” for not one, but two years, according to Variety.
– CBS picked up a Chris O’Donnell-led spinoff of “NCIS” which is going to “focus on undercover ops instead of forensics.” Wait, wasn’t that the premise of “The Unit”?
– If no one watches “Samantha Who?” and it gets canceled, does it make a sound? Juuuuust kidding. (Not about it being canceled.)
– “The Office” creators (and I’m talking about the original UK version), Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, inked a deal with HBO to produce an animated comedy based on their podcast about their unusual friend, Karl Pilkington, whom they seem to think is the most fascinating man in the world. (And coming from those two, that’s high praise.)
Fox has officially announced its schedule for the fall, but let’s lead with a bit of bad news: “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” is not on it. The network officially canceled the series, and while I’m still dumbfounded by that decision, you know they’ll double-back and find a way to get it back onto the schedule if “Terminator: Salvation” is a hit. Or maybe they’ll release a straight-to-DVD movie which picks up where the series ends. Either way, I just cannot imagine that this will be the complete and total end of Sarah Connor’s TV adventures.
Okay, onto what is on the schedule, along with a few editorial comments…
MONDAY
8:00 PM – House
9:00 PM – LIE TO ME
Looks like another year of having to watch “House” and “Lie To Me” as full-season sets when they come out on DVD, because I’m still going to be watching “The Big Bang Theory,” “How I Met Your Mother,” and “Heroes.”
TUESDAY
8:00 PM – So You Think You Can Dance
WEDNESDAY
8:00 PM – So You Think You Can Dance Results Show
9:00 PM – Glee
The distinctive new comedy from Ryan Murphy (“Nip/Tuck”) starring Jane Lynch (“The 40 Year Old Virgin”) and newcomers Matthew Morrison (Broadway’s “Hairspray”), Lea Michele (“Spring Awakening”) and Cory Monteith (“Kyle XY”). Combining biting humor with a soundtrack of hit music from past to present, the inventive series follows an optimistic high school teacher who – against all odds – attempts to restore McKinley High’s fading Glee Club to its former glory, while helping a group of underdogs realize their true star potential.
THURSDAY
8:00 PM – Bones
9:00 PM – Fringe
When my wife finds out that “Fringe” is going to be competing against her beloved “Office,” she’s gonna be so pissed…
FRIDAY
8:00 PM – Brothers
A new half-hour comedy about a former big-city NFL hot shot who returns home to his family – and his mother’s house – to get his life back on track. Starring Michael Strahan (“FOX NFL Sunday”) and Daryl “Chill” Mitchell (“Ed,” “Veronica’s Closet”).
8:30 PM – ‘Til Death
9:00 PM – Dollhouse
Really? They canceled “Sarah Connor” for this? And do they really think this coupling is going to help the “Dollhouse” numbers?
SATURDAY
8:00 PM – Cops
8:30 PM – Cops
9:00 PM – America’s Most Wanted
11:00 PM – The Wanda Sykes Show – The irreverent Saturday late-night series will feature Sykes’ outspoken comedic perspective on current events along with topical, high-energy roundtable discussions.
12:00 AM – Animation Domination encores
SUNDAY
7:00 PM – The OT (NFL Post-Game Show)
8:00 PM – The Simpsons
8:30 PM – The Cleveland Show – Everyone’s favorite soft-spoken FAMILY GUY neighbor, Cleveland Brown, moves with his son back to his hometown in Virginia and settles down with his high school sweetheart and her unruly kids.
9:00 PM – Family Guy
9:30 PM – American Dad
MIDSEASON
MONDAY
8:00 PM – House
9:00 PM – 24
TUESDAY
8:00 PM – American Idol
9:00 PM – Past Life
A fast-paced emotional thriller inspired by the book “The Reincarnationist.” The series stars Kelli Giddish (“All My Children”) as a gifted psychologist and Nicholas Bishop (“Home and Away”) as a former NYPD detective who work together to explore and unravel mysteries that must be solved in both the past and the present.
Wow, that doesn’t sound at all like “Life on Mars.”
WEDNESDAY
8:00 PM – American Idol Results Show
9:00 PM – Human Target
A full-throttle, action-packed thrill ride from executive producers McG (“Terminator Salvation”) and Simon West (“Con Air,” “Tomb Raider”). Based on the popular DC Comics graphic novel and starring Mark Valley (FRINGE), Chi McBride (“Pushing Daisies”) and Academy Award nominee Jackie Earle Haley (“Watchmen”), the series follows CHRISTOPHER CHANCE (Valley), a unique private contractor who will stop at nothing – even if it means becoming a human target – to keep his clients alive.
Anyone else noting the irony that the director of the new “Terminator” movie is getting a show just as the “Terminator” TV series is getting canceled?
THURSDAY
8:00-9:00 PM BONES
9:00-10:00 PM FRINGE
FRIDAY
8:00-8:30 PM BROTHERS
8:30-9:00 PM ‘TIL DEATH
9:00-10:00 PM DOLLHOUSE
SATURDAY
8:00-8:30 PM COPS
8:30-9:00 PM COPS
9:00-10:00 PM AMERICA’S MOST WANTED
11:00 PM-Midnight THE WANDA SYKES SHOW (working title)
Midnight-12:30 AM ANIMATION DOMINATION ENCORES
SUNDAY
7:00 PM – Animation Domination encores
7:30 PM – American Dad
8:00 PM – The Simpsons
8:30 PM – Sons of Tucson
From three-time Emmy Award winner Todd Holland (“Malcolm in the Middle”), the non-traditional family comedy stars Tyler Labine (“Reaper”) as a charming but wayward schemer hired by three young brothers whose father is in prison.
9:00 PM – Family Guy
9:30 PM – The Cleveland Show
Sony’s decision to break up the first season of “The Spectacular Spider-Man” into volumes may be a hard one to swallow, but at least they haven’t wasted any time in releasing them on DVD. While the last two sets were definitely an improvement over the slightly disappointing “Return of the Lizard” trilogy, Volume Four ups the ante yet again by expanding the universe to include even more things we loved about the comics. For starters, it marks the debut of the popular alien symbiote and black suit storyline (which also includes a cool flashback to Spider-Man’s origin), and perhaps more importantly, the entrance of fan favorite Venom into the fold. Those who feel like the comics went downhill after the introduction of Venom, however, will be pleased to discover that the writers have included a few classic stories as well including a team-up episode with Black Cat and the inevitable formation of the Sinister Six (the vintage line-up featuring Doc Ock, Sandman, Rhino, Electro, Vulture and Shocker). The show only gets better with every episode, and though it would be nice to be able to watch more than just a few at a time, we’ll take what we can get.
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