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Posts tagged as “NBC”

TV Mid-Season '09: The Complete Review – What is coming back

As we know, who says new year, says new schedule.

Time for The Complete Review’s awesome second part about the mid-season.
Let’s get it on and start things off with what is coming back.
I am not here talking about shows that premiered in fall, rather shows from last year that we have all been waiting for (or not?).

They’re back again. With a full stomach.


– Flashpoint – Season 2 (premieres Jan. 9): As previously reported, including the last 4 episodes from Season One, the second season should be comprised of 22 fresh episodes. Can it still be the hit it was last year? Only time (and Nielsen) will tell.


– Friday Night Lights – Season 3 (premieres Jan. 16): The season that has already been shown on DirecTV. I’m waiting for the HD release to watch it. Has it refound its Season One epicness?


– Scrubs – Season 8 (premieres Jan. 6): If you still haven’t heard, don’t be confused; Scrubs has moved to ABC due to shitty programming by NBC (amongst other things). If you want to get spoiled on the season/series-finale, there’s an interview with Bill Lawrence (the show’s creator) talking about that and what will happen once he and Zach Braff leave at the end of this year (yes, the show will probably continue in some form).
– Lost – Season 5 (premieres Jan. 21): They got off it. Now how do they go back?


– 24 – Season 7 (premieres Jan. 11): 24: Redemption was crap, and so were the first 15 minutes of the Season 7 premiere. Mix that with Tony Almeida coming back from his grave as a villain, and you’ve got another crappy 24 season on your hands. Or perhaps not?


– Reaper – Season 2 (premieres March 17): Cool first season, although I preferred Chuck to it.


– Big Love – Season 3 (premieres Jan. 18): Never saw the point of this show.
– Flight of the Conchords – Season 2 (premieres Jan. 18): I am told it is awesomely great.


– The L Word – Season 6 (premieres Jan. 18): Haven’t watched the show since Season 3 so can’t really comment on it.

The Big Unknown
The Tudors – Season 3 (Spring): How can a historical show continue to reinvent itself? By changing History.


– Battlestar Galactica – Season 4 (or rather 5) (premieres Jan. 16): This show has disappointed me so much since the third season, I just want to get it over with.


– Damages – Season 2 (premieres Jan. 7): The first season was epic and the second is supposed to begin where we last left off our awesome characters. Unfortunately it is quite probable that this second season will be less formidable than the first, though still quite entertaining nonetheless.

The Big Unknown
Rescue Me – Season 5 (Spring): The latest season was just okay with completely useless mini episodes. Let’s hope Rescue Me can wake up (I was about to do a Rescue Me play on word but waaaaay too easy). Michael J. Fox is coming back to TV with a role as Janet’s new love interest.

Now that we’ve seen new seasons, we’ll get a good look at the fresh new shows coming our way for this mid-season.
My guess is: awesomeness is coming.

Mix it up

Looks like the NBC exec-change is already having an impact of TV shows.
Case in point with the mid-season drama The Philanthropist.
David Eick is now out, now focusing on BSG’s spin-off Caprica while Tom Fontana is back in.
He was previously pushed out after “creative differences” with the previous NBC execs.

Meanwhile new N.Y. taxes should take effect on April 1 (no joke), targetting downloads and other entertainment goods (like iTunes movies, cable/sattelite TV, movie tickets, radio, etc.).
An accretion of $15 million from the 09-10 season and $20 mil from the 10-11 season in the budget is expected with the download-tax, while the proposed sat/cable/radio tax could bring in a further $136 mil for 09-10 and $180 mil for 10-11.

Is NBC reviving television?

Is NBC reviving television?

Okay, so we know that the people running NBC are the reincarnation of the Devil and/or are morons.
But is what they are doing such a bad thing?
You’re probably pulling hair out of your head right now.

And this leads me to my second shocking question of the week:
Is NBC reviving television?

Or rather: Are Dumb and Dumber indirectly boosting creative content?

As I pointed out yesterday, the 10PM slot is begging to be changed.
Well, not really “begging”.
CBS’ Les Moonves himself declared the other day that “Taking a third [broadcast] competitor out of the marketplace will make us even stronger”, though he said that for different reasons (“‘CSI: Miami’ on Monday at 10 o’clock will beat Jay by a lot. Remember that. By a lot.”).
The Leno-move should not be without consequences for the 10PM slot on the other nets.
I am not talking about drastic schedule changes here (even if I’m guessing it’ll unfortunately come to that — affiliates anyone?).
I am talking here more about quality changes.
We have in one corner C.S.I., and in the other Jay Leno.
Bring on the alternative!

And if there isn’t any alternative on the Big Five, then we sure as hell will tune to other content-providers.

Like Cable.

Less network series means more cable series.
More cable series means (generally) more quality-content, more creative control and more options.
And all this leads to more cable channels taking chances on new talent.

We have already covered in much details the cable scenario though, so I won’t repeat here.

An Nth movie channel by Paramount, MGM and Lionsgate is even in the works.
How long before they are making their own original content?

And don’t forget the Internet!

Leslie declared that CBS has “about 12 different ways” to monetize “their content” after its first run.
Wait…
I thought that no money could be made off the Internet?
Or was that only during the strike?
I’m confused.

Anyway, there’s plenty of opportunities over the Internet.
A new wave of entertainment is arriving.

Let us sum up everything neatly with this great metaphor:
Basically Jay Leno moving to primetime is like the wings of a butterfly flapping in Central Park, causing an earthquake in Asia/Television.
Wait.
This metaphor is clearly not the right one as it far from represents this duality that all the various repercussions from the Jeno-move (will) have on the entertainment industry.
But whatever.

Congrats to NBC on a coup that will for sure change the industry.
Or at least make everyone in the Biz crazy right now.