TV Jots » Fall 2006

NB: Ugly Betty, Harry Potter, and The King of Queens

Chandra — Thu, 21 Dec 2006 21:47:00 +0000

Be Ugly For Me, Baby

Well, here’s something I can definitely jump on board with and still look at myself in the mirror the next morning. ABC is launching a public service campaign to complement both the success of its rookie megahit Ugly Betty and the recent global fashion-industry outcry against models who look skinny enough to drop dead of starvation on the spot. Named “Be Ugly ’07,” the event will officially launch on December 30, just in time for New Years and the hordes of women who will soon thereafter start striving to lose the ten pounds they just gained eating starch-ified holiday food. The campaign’s positive and realistic message is a commendable one: “Be real, be smart, be passionate, be true to yourself and be ugly.” That’s no problem at all for me, and I hope this healthier attitude catches on with the intended audience.

Harry’s Got Title

The time has almost arrived to say goodbye to Harry Potter and his magical world, but first, the name of J.K. Rowling’s forthcoming seventh and final novel in the wizard series is … Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Apparently, there’s some type of game on the author’s personal Web site that you have to work your way through in order to get to the goodness you seek. No matter how long I puttered around with all the pretty imagery there (and believe me, it wasn’t more than a minute or two), I saw neither hide nor hair of any game. Isn’t it sweet to be young and willing to jump through all of those hoops just to find out the name of a book? I guess adults should simply be happy that kids are reading an actual book in the first place. Let the next wave of Potter mania begin.

One Last Hurrah for The King of Queens

It’s official. As of today’s CBS scheduling-related press release, the network has made it clear that its current season will be the ninth and last season for the family sitcom The King of Queens. And just when female lead Leah Remini finally dropped all of the extra pregnancy weight that too many people gave her too hard a time about last season. [Honestly—she's looking great right now.] The show’s final stretch is slated for a seven-episode arc beginning April 9 and continuing until the end of May.

Photos courtesy of Terra and CBS

OnTV 12-21: ‘The O.C.’ Gets a God

Chandra — Thu, 21 Dec 2006 16:54:00 +0000

Hercules Hangs Out in Orange County

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t watch The O.C.. I caught the series debut however many years ago, and it was okay. But it wasn’t okay enough to make the teen- and wealth-focused show a must-see program for me. Nevertheless, if The O.C. featured affable guest stars like Kevin Sorbo of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys more often, my attitude might change. In “The Earth Girls Are Easy,” Sorbo stops by for the first of two guest appearances playing accountant Frank Atwood, the new man at NewMatch. Be advised that this is also the last 2006 episode of the series before it returns next year on January 4 with “The My Two Dads.” Hercules fans can look forward to getting one more glimpse of Sorbo then.

Other New Stuff:

A&E: The First 48 (9:00); Kansas City SWAT (10:00)
BBC America: Afterlife (9:00); No Angels (10:00)
Discovery: Surgery Saved My Life (9:00); Crimes That Shook the World (10:00)
Fox: ‘Til Death (8:00); The War at Home (8:30); The O.C. (9:00)
HGTV: Takeover My Makeover (8:30)
History: Decoding the Past(9:00)
MTV: The Real World/Road Rules Challenge (10:00); Rob & Big (10:30)
MyNet: Wicked Wicked Games (8:00); Watch Over Me (9:00)
NBC: Identity (8:00)
Spike TV: TNA Impact! (9:00)
TNT: NBA Basketball (8:00/10:30)
Travel: Trip of a Lifetime (10:00)

*All times are EST/Eastern Standard Time
The O.C. photo courtesy of Fox

NB: The FCC, Miss USA 2006, and Grey’s Anatomy

Chandra — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 22:28:00 +0000

The FCC Continues to *uck

Gotcha! I don’t mean the f-word, but the s-word. The FCC continues to suck, as its deputy general counsel, Eric Miller, showed during his recent appearance on behalf of the commission before a New York Court of Appeals panel. The matter of the day was the FCC’s latest ridiculous practice of fining networks when they are unable to prevent someone’s profane language from slipping past the censors during live broadcasts. Apparently, their panties got all in a twist after both Cher and a not-so-emaciated Nicole Richie let loose with a few choice *ucks during the 2002 and 2003 live broadcasts of the Billboard Music Awards on Fox. [This time I do mean the f-word, incidentally.]

I don’t know what’s funnier: expecting businesses to pay actual money when they fail to censor every single person who utters a word that takes all of a nanosecond to say (how much damage can that possibly do to anyone if it’s only once or twice?) or imagining FCC reps cursing like sailors themselves in public (C-SPAN broadcast live coverage of this monumentally boring event) while repeating what twisted their panties so. Let me think a moment. … Hmmm. … Yeah, I guess the last one is definitely funnier.

Trump Chooses Not to Dump Wild Child Miss USA

Oh, how much histrionics can one person take? Donald Trump, the money man famous for pretending to be The Man while firing contestants for all sorts of ridiculous reasons on his ridiculous reality series The Apprentice, elected not to tell the one person who most needed to hear it to take a hike. Yes, incessantly drunken, drugging, and partying Tara Conner is still Miss USA 2006 today because Trump decided not to give her the heave ho after her recent very public troubles. I have two words for anyone scratching their heads over this unbelievable development: publicity stunt. Guess when the next season of The Apprentice debuts? That’s right—immediately after the holidays, on Sunday, January 7. There’s nothing like a prolonged public confrontation with a nubile party girl to drum up interest in a fading TV show.

Grey’s Anatomy Tops 2006 for Entertainment Weekly

Whiny lead character Meredith Grey aside, Grey’s Anatomy has enjoyed stunning success since its auspicious debut three years ago. Who knew the entire cast would rise this quickly to teeter atop Entertainment Weekly’s list of 2006′s “brightest stars”? The fans did, that’s who, and now our predictions are fabulously confirmed.

Photos courtesy of the Associated Press and CBS

OnTV 12-20: ‘The King of Queens’ Rules

Chandra — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 17:03:00 +0000

CBS Staple Shining In Its Ninth and Final Season

Often viewed as the bastard brethren of fellow CBS comedy Everybody Loves Raymond when that seminal series was still around, The King of Queens has still managed to consistently entertain its loyal viewers for going on nine solid years. Nowhere was this simple fact more apparent than during the show’s return to active broadcasting on December 6. The double episode that night garnered unexpectedly high ratings that elevated the sitcom to the top of the heap in both half-hour time periods, 8 to 8:30 and 8:30 to 9. Not to be outshone, lead actress Leah Remini is also sporting a fit new figure that should finally squelch all of the unnecessary chatter that started last season regarding her post-pregnancy weight. In tonight’s episode, “Ruff Goin’,” Doug (Kevin James) uses his customarily well-intentioned but ill-fated methods to try and get in good with the neighbors after they neglect to invite him and Carrie (Remini) to their block party. The result? He ends up adopting a dog that he no longer wants after realizing that dogs need love and, most importantly, care, too. The King of Queens is looking good all over, so catch it while it’s still here.

Other New Stuff:

ABC: Primetime (10:00)
The CW: America’s Next Top Model: British Invasion 2 (8:00)
Court TV: Forensic Files (9:00); Under Investigation (9:30); Psychic Detectives (10:00)
Discovery: MythBusters (9:00); Stunt Junkies: Go Big or Go Home (10:00)
MTV: The Real World (10:30); twentyfourseven (10:30)
MyNet: Wicked Wicked Games (8:00); Watch Over Me (9:00)
NBC: Identity (8:00); Dateline NBC (9:00)
Travel: Not Your Average Travel Guide (8:00)

*All times are EST/Eastern Standard Time
The King of Queens photo courtesy of CBS

NB: Joe Barbera, American Idol, and The Prisoner

Chandra — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 21:32:00 +0000

Cartoon Legend Joe Barbera Passes Away at 95

Tom and Jerry. The Flintstones. The Jetsons. Scooby-Doo. These are the cartoons that I and scores of other people grew up watching on a regular basis. The animated classics were brought to the world by the creative team of Hanna-Barbera, individually known as Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera. On Monday, December 18, 95-year-old Barbera passed away of natural causes at his home in Studio City, California. In addition to seven Academy Awards for a series of Tom and Jerry cartoons and eight Emmy Awards, Barbera leaves behind a legacy of bringing joy and a sense of wonder to countless children and adults since 1940, the year that the Tom and Jerry predecessor Puss Gets the Boot first debuted. This gift will surely endure for as long as his numerous animated productions continue to exist; in other words, forever.

American Idol Surprise in Store

The mega music hit doesn’t return to the small screen until January 16 next year, but already the people behind Fox’s ratings killer American Idol are preparing to wow viewers halfway through the forthcoming sixth season. According to the New York Daily News, Idol executive producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz won’t reveal the exact nature of this mid-season event. She just wanted to make sure we knew that “it,” whatever “it” may be, is heading our way. A little hype never hurt, no matter how premature.

British Cult Series The Prisoner Remaking It to AMC

If you’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing the disconcerting 1967 British TV show The Prisoner, boy have you missed out. An odd and oddly intriguing mixture of suspense, science fiction, action-adventure, and drama, the brief seventeen-episode series told the story of an unnamed and newly resigned British government agent (creator, producer, writer, director, and lead actor Patrick McGoohan) who was abducted just as he was about to go on vacation. When the agent, now renamed Number Six, awakes, he finds himself in the mysterious “Village,” a prison pseudocommunity inhabited by other individuals with no names, just numbers, all supposedly security risks with too much knowledge of sensitive information, whatever that may be. The leaders of The Village surveil their prisoners around the clock and seem interested in only one thing—finding out why Number Six resigned from his job. As the tenacious Number Six, who cannot remember his previous life, relentlessly resists giving in to his captor’s desires, he becomes obsessed with escaping and finding out who is in charge of this surreal predicament.

Fans of the cult favorite can get happy now that basic-cable station American Movie Classics has announced their forthcoming remake of the series, currently scheduled to premiere in 2008. I’ve marked my calendar already for the return of one of television’s most compelling series ever.

Photos courtesy of KOMO, Fox, and ITC

OnTV: ‘My Boys’ and A Girl

Chandra — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 17:33:00 +0000

TBS Scores Big Time with Its Latest Original Sitcom

If you want to do yourself a big favor, then wander over to the less explored area of the basic-cable jungle tonight at 10pm EST and check out TBS’ fantastic My Boys, a true find that is—thank the stars—doing very well with both critics and viewers. So well, in fact, that TBS formally announced on December 18 that the network has ordered nine more episodes of the half-hour situation comedy. Excellent. To be accurate, however, My Boys is not a traditional sitcom, at least not in terms of how you feel while watching it. As opposed to going all out to get easy laughs with supposedly snazzy one-liners or forced silly situations, My Boys takes an intelligent approach that assumes the audience is comprised of equally intelligent people. In essence, what we get are believable situations that build and lead to the kind of humor found in real life, based not so much on short-lived jokes but memorable experiences. And to say that series star Jordana Spiro is a treat is a massive understatement—she is luminous, and the show simply would not be the same without her.

The basic premise of the series is five guys, a girl, and her best friend. At the center of it all is PJ Franklin (Spiro), a Chicago sports columnist who shares her life with the five guys, including her married brother and her ex-boyfriend. Add her journalist best friend Stephanie to the mix and we have two capable, single young women who give as much as they get from the world around them while dating and dealing with life. The first of tonight’s episodes, “Free Agent,” finds PJ at the end of the road with her latest significant other, partly because he and her boys go together like oil and water. Then in “Superstar Treatment,” PJ deals with a lack of enthusiasm for one of her boys’ new girlfriend *and* another writer who cribs her story. Jerk.

Other New Stuff:

A&E: Dog the Bounty Hunter (9:00)
ABC: Big Day (9:00/9:30)
BET: American Gangster (10:00)
Discovery: Dirty Jobs (9:00); Everest: Beyond the Limit (10:00)
HGTV: Save My Bath (8:30); Decorating Cents (9:00)
MyNetworkTV: Wicked Wicked Games (8:00); Watch Over Me (9:00)
NBC: Identity (8:00)
Sci Fi: ECW (10:00)
TLC: Overhaulin’ (9:00); Miami Ink (10:00)
Travel: Taste of America (8:00); Best Places to Find Cash and Treasures (10:00/10:30)

*All times are EST/Eastern Standard Time
My Boys photo courtesy of TBS

NB: MyNetworkTV, Yule Logs, and Sean Penn

Chandra — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 21:45:00 +0000

MyNetworkTV to Say Adios to Telenovelas?

When I first learned that MyNetworkTV, the new “netlet” created in the wake of the merger between The WB and UPN, would feature only telenovelas during prime time, my first thought was about how risky that sounded. A classic telenovela airs each weeknight, with no repeats, for an extended arc of time. In the case of MyNetworkTV, the duration is 13 weeks. It’s difficult enough for networks to entice viewers to show up for a serial drama that airs only once a week for an average season of 22 episodes. If you don’t believe it, just witness the recent failures of the rookie serials Day Break, Kidnapped, The Nine (although it isn’t officially canceled yet), Runaway, Smith, and Vanished. That’s six shows all together, a virtual serial massacre. Given these results, how good of a ratings performance could anyone expect from prime-time soap operas that air five nights a week for 13 straight weeks? As MyNetworkTV has steadily learned since its first two original offerings, Desire and Fashion House, debuted in September, not too good.

The Hollywood Reporter now indicates that meetings have taken place at the new network to reconsider just how much programming time should remain devoted to its all-telenovela concept. Apparently, the ratings for Desire and Fashion House were underwhelming, and those for the latest two soaps that debuted two weeks ago on December 6, Wicked Wicked Games and Watch Over Me, have been even worse. I’m not surprised. The attention span of the viewing public has grown shorter and shorter in recent years, largely due to the fault of network execs themselves, who continuously introduce ambitious new series each season, only to kill them before they can even find an audience. And this cancellation fever has only gotten worse as time has passed, leaving fewer people with time to waste on what many politely consider cheesy entertainment. It’s a safe bet that this time next season, MyNetworkTV will only be telenovela TV some of the prime time, if any of the time.

Two Yule Logs for the Price of One

Have you ever seen a TV Yule Log? It’s really nothing exciting to look at, just a burning log that, well, burns on television all day Christmas Day to give your abode that special atmosphere only a glowing flame in the fireplace can, if you don’t happen to have a real fireplace. Apparently, New York, home since 1970 to the WPIX-TV Yule Log I grew up with, now has a new burning tree stump to rival the original. It’s featured on high-definition channel INHD, where it has been making some serious inroads over the last three years into the audience previously enjoyed only by the WPIX log. Too bad I moved before I had the chance to experience the modern version of this hometown classic, especially since only in New York could residents have dueling holiday Yule Logs.

And Now A Word (or Two) from Sean Penn, the Recipient of the 2006 Christopher Reeve First Amendment Award

There is no way for me to paraphrase the content of Sean Penn’s speech for this honor without irreparably watering it down. Thus, I refer interested parties to the source. Put your thinking cap on and get ready for not just another dumb Hollywood actor.

Photo and logo courtesy of ABC and MyNetworkTV

OnTV: Guess My ‘Identity’

Chandra — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 16:23:00 +0000

Penn Jillette Hosts Yet Another New Game Show

That’s right. In the quest for sometimes easy ratings, NBC is now bringing us its latest game show, Identity, for a limited five-episode run. Now that’s a short season, so I’m guessing there’s no wiggle room in there for premature cancellation, which is good considering the dismal failure of the last two game shows unleashed on the viewing public, Fox’s The Rich List (yanked after just one episode) and ABC’s Show Me the Money (canceled last Friday after a mere five episodes). But then again, NBC has been on a roll, game-show wise, with both the wildly popular Deal or No Deal and the recent success, 1 vs. 100.

Scheduled to air every night this week from 8–9pm EST, Identity is hosted by comedian-magician Penn Jillette of Showtime’s Penn & Teller: Bullshit! (love that title, so I just had to work it in). The setup, as with most game shows, is fairly simple: guess a stranger’s identity by correctly matching traits with visual cues. In other words, do pretty much what you always do when you’re around other people, but get a chance to win lots of money—up to half a million smackeroos—at the same time. If mindless entertainment is your thing, this should be loads of fun. Otherwise, at least it’s only on every night this week.

Other New Stuff:

ABC: Supernanny (9:00); What About Brian (10:00)
Animal Planet: Incredible Journeys (8:00)
BBC America: The Eleventh Hour (9:00)
Bravo: Inside the Actors Studio (7:00)
Comedy Channel: Reel Comedy (8:30)
E!: Dr. 90210 (10:00)
ESPN: Monday Night Football (8:30)
Game Show Network: High Stakes Poker (8:00/9:00)
History: Engineering an Empire (9:00)
MyNetworkTV: Wicked Wicked Games (8:00); Watch Over Me (9:00)
NBC: Deal or No Deal (8:00)
Spike TV: Disorderly Conduct (10:00)
TBS: 10 Items or Less (11:00)
USA: WWE Monday Night RAW (8:00)

*All times are EST/Eastern Standard Time
Identity image and photo courtesy of NBC

OnTV: ‘Survivor’ Supersized Finale

Chandra — Sun, 17 Dec 2006 05:34:00 +0000

The Cook Islands Castaways’ Last Curtain Call Gets Major Screen Time on a New Night

I don’t watch CBS’ Survivor personally, but I suppose any show that’s going to end its season with three hours of dedicated programming deserves a special shout-out. Heck, any TV show that makes it even halfway to a thirteenth season, like Survivor has, merits bells and whistles each time it wraps up yet another year. And we all know that the überpopular reality series will be back for more in 2007. Let’s just hope that next time, the producers and execs come up with a better gimmick than forced ethnic/racial segregation.

According to the CBS press release, there will be lots to keep fans absorbed. Read on to find out just what.

THE JURY OF NINE WILL DETERMINE THE WINNER BY VOTING ON THE FINAL THREE WHEN THE “SURVIVOR: COOK ISLANDS” FINALE IS BROADCAST ON A SPECIAL NIGHT — SUNDAY, DEC. 17

The Sunday Night Finale Will Be Followed By A Live One Hour Reunion Show From Los Angeles Featuring The Castaways Together For The First Time Since Being In The Cook Islands

The SURVIVOR: COOK ISLANDâ€™s finale will begin with five castaways and the winner determined among the final three when the series finale is broadcast on a special night, Sunday, Dec. 17 (8:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Immediately following, Jeff Probst will host a LIVE reunion show (10:00-11:00, ET, tape delayed PT) from CBS Television City in Los Angeles.

SURVIVOR: COOK ISLANDS began with 20 castaways which featured the series’ most ethnically diverse cast to date. The castaways were organized into four tribes divided along ethnic lines (African-American, Asian-American, Hispanic-American and Caucasian). For the first time ever, a jury of nine former castaways will decide among the final three survivors who will become the Sole Survivor and win the $1 million prize.

The Sunday night finale will be followed by a LIVE one hour reunion show from Los Angeles featuring the 20 castaways together for the first time since being in the Cook Islands.

Other New Stuff:

A&E: Intervention (10:00)
CBS: 60 Minutes (7:00)
The CW: Reba (7:00)
Fox: The Simpsons (8:00); American Dad (8:30); Family Guy (9:00)
HBO: Tsunami, The Aftermath (8:00)
Lifetime: The Road to Christmas (9:00)
NBC: Football Night in America (7:00); Sunday Night Football (8:15)
Showtime: Sleeper Cell (9:00/Finale); Dexter (10:00/Finale)
VH1: Breaking Bonaduce (9:30/Finale); Celebrity Paranormal Project (10:00/Finale)

*All times are EST/Eastern Standard Time
Survivor: Cook Islands image courtesy of CBS

OnTV: Holiday Film Fests

Chandra — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 16:25:00 +0000

The Big Three Networks Go All Out for the Holidays

You know it’s almost time for Santa to slide down the chimney when all three Big Three networks air holiday-inspired, kid-friendly movies during prime time. It actually makes me feel kind of bad for misanthropes and holiday haters around the world, who must be absolutely seething over all of this joyousness. For them, I advise tuning into the Sci Fi Channel at 9pm EST, where they can catch the premiere of Dead & Deader, the basic cable station’s latest zombie-fied original movie, featuring former small-screen Superman Dean Cain. Or if you prefer your films on the fantasy, modern-classic side, give basic cable’s TNT a try at 8pm EST. It’s broadcasting director Peter Jackson’s triumphant, 11-Oscars-winning LOTR trilogy finale, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, which will only be about a whopping 255 minutes with commercials thrown in. That translates to three hours and twenty-one minutes of movie, folks, with an extra fifty-four minutes of adverts stirred in for your viewing pleasure. Talk about an anti-holiday film fest for the rest of us who can’t stand sappy Xmas TV. I’m not one of those people, though, so read on…

If animated flicks are your thing or you have young ones, ABC is the place to be at 8pm EST for 2003′s Finding Nemo, the Oscar-winning underwater delight about a clown fish, voiced by Albert Brooks, in search of his missing son. Awww, isn’t that sweet?

Sea World not your idea of a good time? Then how about gigantic elves? CBS has just the thing for you then if yes, namely Will Ferrell’s funny turn in the 2003 big-screen comedy Elf at 8pm EST. How can you not laugh in the presence of a 6'3 ½" man who genuinely thinks he’s one of Santa’s diminutive helpers? Thankfully, the movie is about a bit more than only that, making it good entertainment for Ferrell fans and then some.

Have you no love for film-length cartoons or oversized elves? Well, an undisputed classic is also available on NBC at 8pm EST—Frank Capra’s definitive It’s a Wonderful Life, starring James Stewart, of course, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, and Henry Travers. This 1946 movie makes you think twice about wishing you’d never been born, all the better to appreciate your life.

Photos courtesy of Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures, New Line Cinema, and Liberty Films