Category: TV Dramas (Page 93 of 235)

TV Roundup: “Terminator: TSCC” ratings, “Dollhouse” news and more

April 13, 2009 /

– Quality-wise, “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” finished really strong, but the ratings stayed even over the course of the season, so the future of the show is definitely in question. The show finished with a nail-biting four- or five-episode run, but the series’ overall slow pace drove away all but the most faithful of viewers. This should have been a 13-episode-per-season series from the start.

– “Dollhouse” ratings from last Friday matched a season low. Not good. More bad news: Fox isn’t going to air the 13th (already shot) episode, though some in Joss Whedon’s camp suggest that the 12th episode (“Omega”) is his original vision for the season finale. (I’m as confused as you are.)

– TNT broke a streak of “successful” shows by canceling “Trust Me.” TNT head of programming Michael Wright said that “it just didn’t find an audience.”

– “Prison Break” returns this Friday with the first of the final eight (?) hours of the series.

External Entertainment, External TV, News, Prison Break, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas, TV Sci-Fi

“Harper’s Island” — good idea, spotty execution

April 13, 2009 /

** WARNING: FIRST EPISODE “HARPER’S ISLAND” SPOILERS AHEAD **

There are/were a few reasons to be optimistic about CBS’s 13-part miniseries: 1) the premise — 13 episodes with one character dying each week until the murderer is revealed, 2) it has a good look and feel to it, and 3) it has an end date.

As I was watching the premiere, I was amazed by the utter lack of familiar faces. Anytime Harry Hamlin is the most famous actor on a series, it can’t be a good sign. (No offense, Harry. I do like your work, but you’re just not the carry-a-series type anymore. By the way, see Will Harris’ interview with Hamlin here.) I watch a lot of TV, and other than Hamlin, I only recognized three faces — Chris Gauthier (Vincent from “Eureka”), Richard Burgi (Karl from “Desperate Housewives”) and Jim Beaver (Uncle Bobby from “Supernatural”) — and I think it’s safe to say that each of these actors play supporting characters on those other series. This lack of “name” talent tells me one of two things: 1) they couldn’t cast the actors they wanted, or 2) they purposefully went with relatively unknown talent to keep everyone guessing. (One of the best ways to solve a television mystery is to see if there are any recognizable guest stars in the cast. If so, there’s a good chance that you’ve found your killer. For that reason, Hamlin’s casting and subsequent murder did surprise.)

One of the other problems with the premiere is that it really didn’t grab me. CBS put together a solid promo campaign for the series, but the first episode just didn’t live up to the hype. For one, the characters really didn’t make much of an impact. Even after watching each actress in a few scenes, I’m still not sure if I could pick the bride or the bride’s sister out of a lineup. Secondly, save for maybe Abby Mills (the groom’s best friend whose mother died in murders years ago), there really isn’t anyone to root for. I realize that they need to keep things close to the vest, but would it hurt to have two or three protagonists to cheer for?

I’m pretty sure that I’m going to save myself 12 hours and just check the “Harper’s Island” wiki page in a few months and see what happened. There is just too much good television on right now (and my Netflix queue is getting pretty backed up). Besides, other than the occasional comedy and “The Unit,” it seems anytime I start watching a CBS series, it just doesn’t end well.

External Entertainment, External TV, Harper's Island, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas

A Chat with “Harper’s Island” Victim #1

April 10, 2009 /

If you watched the premiere of CBS’s new murder-mystery series, “Harper’s Island,” either last night at 10 PM, where it won its timeslot against the stiff competition of NBC’s “Southland,” or online, where it was CBS.com’s biggest online premiere ever, then you already know who the show claimed as its first victim. But in case the episode is currently sitting on your DVR, waiting for an hour to free up on your busy schedule, we wouldn’t want to spoil their identity for you, so we’ll wait ’til after the jump to do any namedropping. We will, however, offer up a bit of an in-joke for those of you who are in the know:

This person may not be “sixteen, clumsy, and shy” at this point in their career, but the Smiths song in which those words are featured says a great deal about how their character was left at the end of the first episode of “Harper’s Island.”

Victim #1, would you sign in, please?

Continue reading »

Actors, External Entertainment, External Movies, External TV, Harper's Island, Interviews, Movies, Sci-Fi Movies, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas

Discussing the “Life On Mars” finale

April 10, 2009 /

Ted Anthony of the AP wrote a good article about how (and why) the finale for “Life On Mars” rubbed some people the wrong way. AP is tightening its restrictions on blogs quoting their content, so I’ll just link to the piece and move on. (It’s a good read.) By the way, there are “Life On Mars” spoilers ahead.

Anthony compares the “LOM” finale to that of “The Sopranos” and describes both as the kind of open-ended television that American audiences don’t like. This is one point I don’t necessarily agree with. The ending from “LOM” did come from out of nowhere, but I thought it buttoned things up pretty well. It explained why he was back in 1973 and why all those weird things were happening around him. Throughout the season, I was hoping that the creators would find a way for Sam and Annie to be together in the future, in the past, whatever, but I wasn’t expecting it to be in the year 2035.

Sure, Annie isn’t really Annie, but in the final scene it was obvious that there was (or there will be) something going on between the two astronauts. Maybe she didn’t know it yet, but he clearly developed feelings for 1973 Annie and I think that relationship will progress in 2035. The astronauts aren’t exactly the same as their characters in 1973, but that final scene proved that their personalities are similar, which is why I believe that “Sam” and “Annie” will eventually be together.

I did some research about the UK version of the show and discovered that the US ending was a big departure. Had our version ended the same way, I think there would be more of an uproar about how the conclusion wasn’t satisfying enough.

Again, I applaud ABC and the “LOM” creators for coming to a quick decision about the fate of the series and giving the loyal viewers a sense of closure. Some were unhappy to discover that the 1973 characters were just that — characters. But this is television, people. Aside from reality TV (or at least some of it), these are all characters. I’m just happy that Annie, Gene, Ray and Chris exist in some form in Sam’s present.

It was a fun ride while it lasted.

External Entertainment, External TV, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas, TV Sci-Fi

TV Roundup: “Eastbound & Down” renewed, ABC cleans house and more

April 9, 2009 /

– HBO has decided to renew “Eastbound & Down” for a second season. I just finished watching the six-episode first season and it was hilarious. There are at least 10 great lines or laugh out loud moments in each episode. If you start to watch the series, be sure to watch through the fourth episode before cutting it from your playlist. Between “Eastbound & Down” and “Summer Heights High,” comedy is alive on HBO.

– ABC has settled on a schedule for the final episodes of “Pushing Daises,” “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money” to run this summer. I stopped watching “Eli Stone” early on, and “Dirty Sexy Money” earlier this season, but I’m especially sad to see “Pushing Daises” go.

– “Chuck” is on the verge of cancellation, but the good folks over at ChuckTV.net are doing their best to save the show. You can get free swag if you support their cause.

– “Fringe” fans, you know all of those weird symbols that appear just before the commercial breaks? Well, someone has figured out what they all mean.

External Entertainment, External TV, TV, TV Comedies, TV Dramas

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