Silly me: I’ve been misreading this as “Sons of Tucson.” Maybe because that’s where I live.
Whoops! I went to the article, and I was right. It is “Sons of Tucson.”
:smack: Must have Italy on the brain…
So the ABC upfront yesterday was interesting… Here’s what I remember, I may be forgetting a show or two:
Dramas:
Flash Forward - Show wrapped around a mystery where everyone in the world blacks out for about five minutes and flashes forward to exactly six months into the future where they see just a few minutes of that time. Expensive production, decent cast (including Penny from Lost) and I think it’s created or written by David Goyer. They showed us the entire first act and it seemed good, though the editing was a little choppy.
The Forgotten - Show about amatuer detectives that work to identify John and Jane Doe murder victims. Looks like a story of the week type show in the vein of Cold Case or Criminal Minds. Clips looked good though and could be worth checking out.
Eastwick- Yes, that Eastwick. It looks like a cross between Desperate Housewives and Charmed.
V - Looks awesome. This is a midseason show and I think it’s going to be pretty good. We’ll see.
Comedies:
Hank- Kelsey Grammer stars as a wealthy guy who loses all his money in the economic downturn and has to move hist family away from his expensive Manhattan life to a more modest one in his hometown. Fish out of water type show that didn’t look that funny or interesting.
The Middle - Stars Patricia Heaton (Everybody Loves Raymond) as a mom in a middle-class family. Looks pretty funny and well done. Has a “Malcolm in the Middle” vibe to it.
Cougar Town - Courtney Cox as a recent divorcee who is now a “cougar”. Looks funny and well-written enough though the term Cougar already feels outdated.
Modern Family- This was my favorite of everything we saw. Show follows three unconventional families and goes back and forth between their stories . We actually got to watch the entire pilot and it was hilarious. Well written, well acted, etc… It’s pretty smart which means it won’t last, but I really liked it. It’s done in a mockumentary style though which is feeling a little overdone now, but everyone should check it out.
I will be checking out *Modern Family *-- welcome back Ed O’Neill!
Nope, after being burned so many times (John Doe, Joan of Arcadia, the Pretender, etc) no more “mystery shows” unless they have written down the big ending secrets and sealed it in a mayonaisse jar on funk&wagnalls porch.
Fortunately, in Flash Forward’s case, we can just read the book.
Looking at the schedules…
Wait a second… Heroes at 8:00 PM on Mondays… House on 8:00 PM on Mondays… How I Met Your Mother at 8:00 PM on Mondays… ARGH!!! Not again… this is how I stopped watching “Chuck” (DVR only has two tuners).
Oh well… nice to know you “Heroes”
HelloNinja – how is it that you get to go to the upfronts?
They should combine those shows. Maybe have them working in a news studio. Just don’t have any lame storylines that take over the entire show about how they have a secret love child. :smack:
I don’t know if TNT has announced anything yet, but new episodes of Saving Grace start June 16.
Woot!
Anyone know anything about some summer series, like Burn Notice?
It comes back in about two weeks, on June 4.
I made this decision a while back because of Dancing with the Stars. DVR two, watch the third on another TV. Crazy.
Thursdays at 9 are shaping up to be a battle as well, Grey’s Anatomy vs. CSI vs. The Office vs. Fringe vs. Supernatural. That’ll be interesting.
I’d really like to know what’s going on at CBS that they’re killing Without a Trace, the #10 drama by ratings, and without a series finale, and picking up the mediocre ratings loser Medium, after NBC finally pulled the plug on the thing that they’ve been using as a midseason replacement for the last two years. That’s crazytown.
I’m a media buyer in Chicago. Unfortunately I don’t get to go to the big upfront events in NYC, but the networks have big parties here where they simulcast the live show for us.
CBS’s upfront was yesterday, I’ll have a recap of what I saw in a little bit.
Oh, hell to the no. You got a show where a guy has to eat a bowl of soup so big that he throws up in it trying to eat it, and then can’t move on until he eats it all??? Or an African village stands around and watches Americans single-handedly gag down an entire ostrich egg that could feed about three of their families, complete with barf bucket nearby? That will never be head an shoulders above anything.
Do you have a link to a combined schedule?
I can’t speak for Without A Trace, but I think the deal with Medium has something to do with CBS owning the company that produces Medium, so they get a cut of syndication, DVD sales, etc, so it’s actually profitable for them to make sure the show keeps going, even if it’s not the biggest hit. At least that’s the reasoning I heard a few years ago when it wasn’t a sure thing if NBC was going to pick up the show again that year. It’s similar to why ABC keeps picking up Scrubs again.
Ok, so as promised - here is a quick rundown of the new CBS shows for the Fall and midseason. Let’s see how much I remember from yesterday’s upfront:
The Good Wife - Looks pretty good actually. Stars Juliana Marguilies and Chris Noth. Noth is a Chicago state’s attorney who falls in some sort of scandel and ends up in prison. Margulies is his wife who stands by his side during all of the press. Sound familiar? Anyway, she’s an attorney who goes back to work once he’s in jail and it’s all about her making her way back in the world after suffering complete humiliation. I’ll definitely be checking this one out.
**
Three Rivers **- Medical show starring that lead vampire guy from the short-lived Moonlight series and the girl that played Shane in The L Word. Not as relationship-y as Grey’s, maybe more along the lines of Chicago Hope. Didn’t look that compelling really.
**
NCIS: Los Angeles **- Spinoff starring Chris O’Donnell and LL Cool J. Blah.
The Bridge - midseason show about a good cop standing up against a corrupt system. Stars Chief Tyrol from Battlestar Galactica. Looked ok.
Only one new comedy on the slate:
Accidentally on Purpose - looks like a TV version of Knocked Up. Jenna Elfman is a “cougar” type that hooks up w/ a young slacker guy after a night out drinking. Ends up preggers and has the guy move in with her. He has a wacky circle of slacker friends. Looked dumb which means it’ll be a big hit.
There was also a new reality show called Undercover Boss that looked good. CEO of a waste management company goes undercover to work amongst the lower ranks. Learns a lot in the process. It sounds corny, but it looks really good and I’m really looking forward to it.
They’re remaking V? That was my favorite show for a while when I was a kid. I remember the scene were Diana ate the live mouse-- made a big impression on me. As a fan of LOST, I was distressed to see Elizabeth Mitchell as a star… for obvious reasons. That sucks, if it means what I think it means. It does have a good cast: Mitchell, Morena Baccarin (in the Diana role it seems), Scott Wolf, and Joel Gretsch from The 4400. Here are some clips from the show.
I hope this is good.