ABC has picked up S.H.I.E.L.D., and the cast photo reminded me so strongly of Torchwood, I couldn’t resist matching up the characters! Coulson is of course Jack, since he can’t die (apparently), and since I don’t know the other characters, I went by looks. And how odd is it that both casts are entirely brunette? Also, there are two Brits in the cast, and now that aliens are obviously part of this universe after Avengers, who’s to say they won’t be investigating everything from invasions to alien tech?
None of ABC’s new comedies is sticking out as must-watch, so I’ll wait for trailers before considering them. Super Fun Night does sound somewhat promising if they do it right, and Back in the Game sounds the most boring (Maggie Lawson better not be leaving Psych for a show as lame as this sounds, and Psych better not be ending). The summaries for Trophy Wife, Mixology, and The Goldbergs interest me not at all, and none have cast I really care about, so previews will have to blow me away.
For the other dramas, Mind Games tops my list, with a unique premise and casting Steve Zahn. Resurrection sounds interesting, but I need a better idea of where they’re going with the show, and of the cast, Omar Epps is the only one I know. Killer Women has an awesome cast, but a lone female Texas Ranger amid all the male ones sounds boring (and didn’t Prime Suspect already try something similar?). Lucky 7 and Betrayal have neither cool casts or cool premises, so they’re an easy pass.
Also, while not a regular series, ABC has picked up Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, a limited series that will bridge Once Upon a Time’s winter hiatus. I definitely plan to watch.
The CW announced series orders for four pilots today, for a total of five new shows (including The Vampire Diaries’ spinoff The Originals) to debut in the 2013-2014 season. The Carrie Diaries was renewed, as well as Nikita, for a shortened season.
Which of these shows will I watch next season? If I have time and the trailers look good, I’ll probably try to check out the pilots for all four new shows. I still need to catch up on The Vampire Diaries to watch the planted pilot for The Originals, but I’m leaning toward not watching the spinoff. Nikita I will watch till the end, and I probably would have at least given a shot to The Carrie Diaries (especially since it includes Doctor Who’s Freema Agyeman) if I had more time when it started airing.
Tomorrow People has an impressive line-up of executive producers (from Chuck, Arrow, The Vampire Diaries, and Nikita) and features genre favorite Mark Pellegrino as well as Robbie Amell (Arrow’s Stephen Amell’s cousin – who will play a character named Stephen). People around the world gaining superpowers isn’t new (see Heroes, Alphas, and more), but can be excellent if done right.
Star-Crossed (formerly Oxygen) has a human girl falling in love with an alien boy after he and 8 other alien teens are integrated into a high school ten years after their people landed on Earth. I’m not familiar with many of the actors, so I’m counting on previews to tell me why this intriguing premise is must-see TV.
The 100 refers to a group of juvenile delinquents who are sent to a nuclear-war-ravaged Earth to see if it’s habitable again. The cast includes a few actors I know from their reoccurring guest spots on other shows. It’s based on an upcoming book series – which I think would be a dream come true: being able to write such a great novel that it’s made into a TV show before it even releases.
Reign focuses on 15-year-old Mary, Queen of Scots, and her closest friends, three of her ladies-in-waiting, amid the secrets of the French court. I usually don’t watch historical shows, but I may give this one a try as it stars Megan Follows (aka Anne Shirley) and Anna Popplewell (aka Queen Susan of Narnia).
Gone are the days of the CW being the teen girl channel. Nearly all of their scripted programming now has a supernatural/sci-fi/action hero bent (4 out of 5 new programs, 5 out of 7 renewed programs), and the remaining ones have distinctive settings (deep South, 80s New York, 16th century France). And out of their 12 scripted shows for next year, I am currently watching four, want to catch up with Supernatural, would have given The Carrie Diaries a try, and will probably watch all five new pilots. That leaves the lone show I care nothing about, Hart of Dixie (ironic since my last name is also Hart), of which I watched the pilot. I didn’t expect to like it, though, since medical shows I like are few and Southern accents bug me.
So next fall, the CW may go from my least-watched channel (the first show I watched was Nikita when it premiered) to the channel with the highest concentration of shows I watch. And with so many genre shows, perhaps it’s more deserving of the Syfy name than the Syfy channel itself!
TV news for next season is starting to heat up, and I’m back to blogging about it as I try to make sense of what’s going on, share the joy of new projects seeing the light of day, and rant about pilots not picked up.
TNT ordered 10 episodes of two new series I’ve been excited about for a while, thanks to one key role and a decent premise. Adam Baldwin’s The Last Ship features a previously-isolated crew racing to find a cure for a global pandemic. Sean Bean’s Legends has the CIA’s top chameleon operative suffering a break with reality amid his many covers.
I watched both trailers for the new shows (which the above loglines are based on), and both seem slightly different from their original premises. I’m not sure if it’s that, or the fact that my TV watching time has been drastically cut, but I’m less excited about these projects than I was initially. Both are going into my “wait and see the reviews/ratings” box for now, and I imagine they’ll stay there for a while. Now that Leverage is over, the only veteran show I’m watching on TNT is last year’s Perception, which was unique and well done enough to stay on my “to watch” list. (I should really make these into real lists and share them – perhaps after upfronts?)
Fox has ordered 4 dramas and 4 comedies (to add to the already-picked-up Dads, which got expanded from 6 to 13 episodes), quite a lot for a channel that doesn’t program anything from 10-11.
Out of the eight, I’m most excited about Enlisted, a military comedy starring Geoff Stults, Chris Lowell, and Parker Young (who play three brothers). Stults won me over completely in The Finder and I also enjoyed his reoccurring role on Ben & Kate, so I’d be at least previewing almost any new show he would be cast in. I’m sad to see that Young will be leaving Suburgatory, since I love his character on that show, but I’m glad he’ll have more of a starring role in this project. Lowell I know mainly as Piz from Veronica Mars, so I’ll have to get a new opinion of his acting now that he won’t be getting in the way of one of my favorite TV couples.
For the other comedies, Us & Them seems the one I’m most likely to watch, with Gilmore Girls’ Alexis Bledel returning to TV and a fun premise: a long-distance relationship with family and friends butting in. Brooklyn Nine-Nine puts a comedy spin on a cop show, and Surviving Jack stars Christopher Meloni. Dads may also warrant a preview, as Seth Green (Oz from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) plays one of the two guys whose fathers move in with them.
I’m disappointed Delirium didn’t get picked up to series. While the sci-fi premise was a bit hokey (a procedure to remove love?), it reminded me of Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee’s novel Forbidden. And I enjoy Emma Roberts’ acting.
I doubt I will watch any of Fox’s new dramas. I may check out Almost Human (an android/human buddy cop show) if the trailer leans more toward sci-fi than cop drama. Rake has Greg Kinnear, but I’m not piqued by a law drama take on House. The story of Sleepy Hollow never interested me, and Gang Related just seems like another cop show with a conflicted loyalties twist (and medical drama with a conflicted loyalties twist worked out so well for The Mob Doctor).
You may have noticed a horrendous lack of posts on this blog over the past weeks. The main reason is my new job. Since I’m now working fulltime, I have only about 4 hours every evening to do EVERYTHING. Probably a third or more of those evenings we have people here at my house, or we’re out visiting friends/family (and I’ve turned down a few of those get-togethers). You can see how many TV shows I watch by seeing which ones I’ve blogged about a lot in the past, and sadly, I’ve fallen behind on nearly every single one. The few spare bits of time left I fill with things like laundry, cooking, reading, checking out a few TV news sites (while dodging spoilers), pinning some Doctor Who stuff on Pinterest, and IMing/texting friends. Weekends rarely help, as those tend to be either filled to the brim with friends and activities, or spent in bed trying to get over a cold or catch up on sleep.
It’s not going to get any better, either, as I’ll be working overtime the next three weeks. So my four evening hours will become two. You can see why I need a TARDIS.
Speaking of Doctor Who, my love for the show only continues to grow. Series 7 resumes in just 10 days! My sister Abbi is trying to catch up before then, so I had her over this past weekend and we watched 21 episodes, finishing series 4 and the specials, and watching all of series 5. Unbeknownst to us, our sister Becky was using her time home alone to try out more of the show since she’d enjoyed “Rose,” and she’d started series 2 by the time we picked her up Sunday to see The Hobbit at the dollar theater.
2012 was a great year for me in regard to uncovering awesome TV shows. It may even top 2011, when I got pulled into Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Bones, Warehouse 13, Eureka, and Veronica Mars, not to mention enjoyed great new fall shows like Once Upon a Time, Grimm, Suburgatory, and Person of Interest.
My top eight new shows for 2012 are also a mix of brand new and new-to-me shows. Like with the list above, this year wasn’t always my first exposure to the shows in question, but 2012 was the year they hooked me. I’m listing the shows in roughly chronological order of getting sucked in.
The Finder
This short-lived Fox drama (so many awesome shows can say the same thing) caught my attention as a companion show to Bones – not quite a proper spinoff as none of the main characters from Bones joined the new show. But with a planted pilot, same showrunner, and guest appearances by Bones cast, the tie was definitely there. Geoff Stults (as Walter) and Michael Clarke Duncan (as Leo) hit it out of the park on day one, but the ratings didn’t match the show’s awesomeness. Fox also aired the episodes out of order, threw in a month-long hiatus in March, and moved the show to the Friday death slot – starting Easter weekend!
From the beginning, the show felt like it should have been airing on USA Network – it had the same breezy, pop-culture-riddled sensibilities as Psych, and would have been a perfect fit for their “Characters Welcome” brand. But in the end, the cancellation of the show was moot, as Michael Clarke Duncan, who as Leo was the heart of the show, passed away over the summer.
I’m still waiting for the DVD set to become available, but at least The Finder introduced me to the amazingness of actor Geoff Stults, who I’m currently enjoying as a reoccurring cast member on Ben and Kate. Sadly, that show also airs on Fox, and I’ve learned not to get attached to anything airing on that network now.
True Blood
Buffy and Being Human showed me that shows about vampires are cool. So to feed my bloodlust, I decided to try out this buzzy HBO show, not really expecting to like it – keeping things PG-13 is more my style, and I’m not a fan of the deep south. But checking out episode one led swiftly to two, and three, as each twisty cliffhanger glamoured me into watching more. Short season meant catching up in time for season 5, and while this show is fairly low on my list of vampire TV shows, it’s addicting enough that I’ll keep coming back.
Happy Endings
There’s a dearth of good comedy over summers, so I decided to give this recommended show a try in late August, and quickly grew to love the quirky group.
The Vampire Diaries
After catching up on True Blood, I decided to try out the last major vampire show currently airing that I hadn’t seen. Plus, I was looking at writing a book with a high school setting and vampires trying to control their urges, and I wanted to make sure it was different enough from this show. The pilot bored me, but I heard later that the rest of the show was a vast improvement, so I dove in during September, and caught up on all three seasons within 3 weeks, just in time for the season 4 premiere.
Like True Blood, the fast-paced storylines made the show insanely addictive, but in this case, the characters and relationships became an even bigger draw. Damon’s struggle with what sort of person to become, Elena’s compassion without weakness, Stefan’s dual nature, Caroline’s ditziness turned to strength, Alaric’s unlikely allies becoming the family he always wanted, and more.
Elementary
No, it’s not Sherlock, but it doesn’t have to be – I love both shows, and Jonny Lee Miller makes an amazing Holmes. Making Watson female, setting the show in NYC, and coming up with new stories instead of revamping the classics all help differentiate this show. And with us getting only 4 1/2 hours of Sherlock every 18 months or so, there’s plenty of room for a fun, quirky drama like this. I enjoy the recovering addict twist, and Joan Watson’s slower progression to teaming up with her client.
Arrow
Aside from Alphas, TV has been sorely missing a good superhero show, and in the wake of The Avengers’ popularity, the Batman trilogy’s gritty conclusion, and America’s obsession with bow-toting heroes, Arrow is exactly what was wanted. While there are still a few rough edges on this new drama (dialogue could use some help), great ratings will give it time to truly soar.
Doctor Who
I always knew I would eventually watch this show. I purchased digital editions of series 1 and 3 back in 2010, and watched a few episodes here and there, but didn’t get hooked. I watched a couple more earlier this year, and in November started liking the show more and more. In December, I started marathoning through Doctor Who in earnest, as most shows were going on hiatus and I had more time. I rewatched season 1 with my sister (and liked it a whole lot more the second time) around Christmas, and caught up with the whole show (excluding classic Who) a few days after the New Year.
Torchwood
I bought the first two series of Torchwood in 2010 also, and despite some misgivings about the show’s adult content, I liked the character of Jack Harkness from Doctor Who enough to give the show a try (and keep all the crossovers in their proper places). As a result of watching the two together, it’s hard to separate Torchwood as a distinct show in my mind. It’s the only show on this list I’m not current with, as I still have 6 episodes left of the Miracle Day mini-series. It’s definitely a more serious show (during various episodes I found myself longing for the more lighthearted Who), morality is a bit grayer, and quite often there isn’t a happy ending. But it definitely grows on you, and there are quite a few exceptional episodes.
No, we didn’t get the end of the world in 2012, but it was the end for several story worlds we’ve grown to love. Which of these dearly departed shows are your favorites?
Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, Pinterest, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Our toolbar at the bottom of the page has lots of quick links to help you share this post, or you can mouse over the image above!
I know I’m missing a few shows that ended in 2012, so feel free to nominate other shows on our Facebook page, tweeting me at @waterfallbooks, or by leaving a comment below. (Be sure to stick with live-action, scripted shows.) Also, there are several shows that have been canceled, but will air their final episodes in 2013, and are therefore not included below (Fringe, Last Resort, The Office, etc.).
Without further ado, vote for up to five of the shows below! Poll will close Monday night, December 31st, so spread the word quickly!
What's your favorite show we said farewell to in 2012? (Choose up to 5!)
It’s hard to believe Christmas will be here in about a week! One of my favorite parts of the season are the awesome holiday episodes shows put out, and now it’s your turn to vote for your favorites! I purposely saved this poll for right before Christmas so I could add in some of 2012’s holiday episodes.
Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, Pinterest, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Our toolbar at the bottom of the page has lots of quick links to help you share this post, or you can mouse over the image above!
I know I’m missing some of your favorite Christmas episodes, so feel free to nominate more episodes on our Facebook page, tweeting me at @waterfallbooks, or by leaving a comment below. Please include both the show and episode name, and yes, you can nominate this year’s holiday episodes! (Be sure to stick with live-action, scripted shows, though it’s fine if just this one episode has some animation, like with a certain Community episode.) Please only nominate Christmas episodes that are part of a regular show, not one-off specials like “A Charlie Brown Christmas” or movie-related specials like “Shrek the Halls.”
Without further ado, vote for up to fifteen of the episodes below! Poll will close Sunday night, December 23rd, giving you one week to spread the word!
What's your favorite Christmas episode? (Choose up to 15!)
Leverage - The Ho Ho Ho Job (17%, 154 Votes)
Supernatural - A Very Supernatural Christmas (8%, 76 Votes)
Doctor Who - The Christmas Invasion (5%, 43 Votes)
Doctor Who - Voyage of the Damned (4%, 35 Votes)
Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol (4%, 35 Votes)
Doctor Who - The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (4%, 34 Votes)
The Big Bang Theory - The Bath Gift Item Hypothesis (3%, 31 Votes)
Psych - Gus's Dad May Have Killed an Old Guy (3%, 26 Votes)
Bones - The Man in the Fallout Shelter (3%, 24 Votes)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Amends (3%, 24 Votes)
How I Met Your Mother - How Lily Stole Christmas (2%, 23 Votes)
The Big Bang Theory - The Santa Simulation (2%, 22 Votes)
Castle - Secret Santa (2%, 21 Votes)
NCIS - Faith (2%, 20 Votes)
NCIS - Newborn King (2%, 19 Votes)
Bones - The Santa in the Slush (2%, 19 Votes)
Friends - The One With the Holiday Armadillo (2%, 18 Votes)
NCIS - Silent Night (2%, 17 Votes)
Psych - Christmas Joy (2%, 17 Votes)
How I Met Your Mother - Symphony of Illumination (2%, 16 Votes)
The Vampire Diaries - O Come, All Ye Faithful (2%, 15 Votes)
Community - Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas (2%, 14 Votes)
New Girl - Santa (2%, 14 Votes)
Psych - The Polarizing Express (2%, 14 Votes)
Community - Regional Holiday Music (1%, 13 Votes)
Community - Comparative Religion (1%, 13 Votes)
Eureka - O Little Town (1%, 12 Votes)
Warehouse 13 - Secret Santa (1%, 12 Votes)
Eureka - Do You See What I See (1%, 12 Votes)
Warehouse 13 - The Greatest Gift (1%, 12 Votes)
Arrow - Year's End (1%, 11 Votes)
Chuck - Chuck vs Santa Claus (1%, 11 Votes)
Veronica Mars - An Echolls Family Christmas (1%, 10 Votes)
House - It's a Wonderful Lie (1%, 10 Votes)
The OC - The Best Chrismukkah Ever (1%, 9 Votes)
Glee - A Very Glee Christmas (1%, 9 Votes)
The X-Files - How the Ghosts Stole Christmas (1%, 8 Votes)
M*A*S*H - Death Takes a Holiday (1%, 8 Votes)
The West Wing - In Excelsis Deo (1%, 6 Votes)
Seinfeld - Festivus (1%, 5 Votes)
The Office - Dwight Christmas (1%, 5 Votes)
The Office - A Benihana Christmas (0%, 4 Votes)
Go On - The World Ain't Over 'Til It's Over (0%, 4 Votes)
The Office - Christmas Wishes (0%, 4 Votes)
Monk - Mr. Monk and the Man Who Shot Santa (0%, 4 Votes)
The Mindy Project - Josh and Mindy's Christmas Party (0%, 3 Votes)
Which TV show has the best flashbacks? That’s the question you get to answer in this week’s poll! Flashbacks add depth to current storylines and allow us to understand characters’ motivations, and range from heartrending to hilarious.
You can nominate shows missing from the poll below, but be sure the show has a significant amount of flashbacks to be included. The show should have a minimum of two episodes with a large portion of the episode as flashback, preferably more, and they should have some impact on the story/characters (a brief explanation would be appreciated!). I’ve added some flashback explanations to a few of the shows in the poll, but they are to jog your memory, not represent every flashback in the show. (One more note – I’ve put Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel as one option since their flashbacks revolve around the same characters for the most part.)
Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, Pinterest, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Our toolbar at the bottom of the page has lots of quick links to help you share this post, or you can mouse over the image above!
Our next poll will be favorite Christmas episodes! Feel free to nominate episodes on our Facebook page, tweeting me at @waterfallbooks, or by leaving a comment below. Please include both the show and episode name, and yes, you can nominate this year’s holiday episodes!
Without further ado, choose up to ten of the shows below, but be sure to vote based on how awesome the flashbacks are! Poll will close Friday night, December 15th, giving you about a week and a half to spread the word!
Which TV show has the best flashbacks? (Choose up to 10!)
Once Upon a Time (Fairy Tale Land) (12%, 121 Votes)
Leverage (recreated past stories) (10%, 105 Votes)
How I Met Your Mother (Robin Sparkles, hippie Barney, college Ted, Marshall, and Lily) (10%, 102 Votes)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel (pasts of Darla, Angel, Drusilla, and Spike) (9%, 91 Votes)
Supernatural (8%, 78 Votes)
The Vampire Diaries (pasts of Damon, Stefan, Katherine, and Klaus) (7%, 71 Votes)
Psych (7%, 70 Votes)
Lost (5%, 53 Votes)
Friends (5%, 48 Votes)
Arrow (scenes on the island) (4%, 43 Votes)
Person of Interest (4%, 42 Votes)
NCIS (Gibbs' and Tony's pasts) (4%, 39 Votes)
White Collar (3%, 32 Votes)
Criminal Minds (3%, 27 Votes)
True Blood (2%, 22 Votes)
Pushing Daisies (2%, 20 Votes)
Nikita (1%, 14 Votes)
Highlander (1%, 13 Votes)
Being Human (BBC) (1%, 11 Votes)
Revolution (1%, 9 Votes)
Being Human (Syfy) (1%, 8 Votes)
Total Voters: 421
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Update – here are some pics I’ve edited to promote the poll! Now you have additional images you can pin on Pinterest, or you can share them on Tumblr, Facebook, and more! I’m working on getting more for the other shows, but you can help out by creating your own!
We have our winners! Our favorite TV couples ultimate showdown has ended, and now it’s time to see which couples garnered the most votes from you, their fans!
You may notice there’s “2012” at the end of the title above. That because I’ve decided to make this TV couples poll an annual event! Things will change up a little each year. I also plan to continue the spring polls with more specific categories, though I will probably change those the most – maybe divisions for comedies and dramas, or by networks. Stay tuned!
Three of these couples did not make it into their division’s top 10, yet managed to improve their rank against increased opposition. Couples from the realistic division dominated this round, winning 6 of the 10 slots and the top two spots by a large margin. None of the wildcard additions made it into the top 10, with most situated close to the bottom (Nick and Jess from New Girl, despite not being an official couple, made it the highest of the newbies – #19).
Speculative couples got a lot of shakeup from last poll to this one. Once Upon a Time had 3 couples in the top 10, now they have none. Whedonverse shows had a decent showing with 2 couples from Firefly and one from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but none got to the top 10 in this poll. Even the winner of that poll barely garnered a hundred votes this time around.
The realistic couples were much more steady. Each of the five shows represented below also had couples in the top ten of the spring poll, though there was a bit of shuffling as to who from each show made it in.
#10 – Barney and Robin from How I Met Your Mother
This time, How I Met Your Mother fans preferred this destined-to-happen couple (don’t you love those HIMYM flash forwards?) over the rock-solid Marshall and Lily (which were #9 in the realistic show poll) by more than 100 votes. In the spring poll, they were less than 50 behind their friends for a #12 finish.
#9 – McGee and Abby from NCIS
Like Barney and Robin, this NCIS couple just missed making it into the top ten in the spring (#11), but got a better rank this year while getting about the same number of votes. (Hmm, I would who would win if we combined votes? Nah, too much math for me, but you’re welcome to figure that out and post it in the comments!)
#8 – The Doctor and Rose from Doctor Who
I can appreciate this couple more now that I’m partway through season two of the show. Their rank dropped from a #4 in the speculative poll, though they managed to garner an additional hundred votes this time around.
#7 – Booth and Brennan from Bones
In the spring poll, this couple was #6 and was joined by their coworkers Angela and Hodgins at #10. Pretty impressive that they only slipped one spot in the ranking against more competition.
#6 – Scully and Mulder
This couple was ranked #13 in the speculative poll, but the original shippers rallied and got them a spot in the top 10 this time.
#5 – Arthur and Gwen from Merlin
This couple stayed rock-solid in the ranks, earning the #5 spot both times. In this poll, they received 250 more votes, perhaps an acknowledgement of the fact that we soon will be bidding them farewell. In my mind, they tie McAbby for the most adorable couple in this top ten.
#4 – Derek and Meredith from Grey’s Anatomy
This couple made a dramatic comeback in the final days of this poll, going from #32 to #4 in less than 4 days. They also improved over their rank (#5) in the spring poll.
#3 – Elena and Damon from The Vampire Diaries
This couple jumped from #6 in the speculative poll, probably aided by the current plotlines on the show. It’s interesting to note – the day that poll ended was when I tried watching the pilot, probably influenced by how many people had voted for Elena and Damon. (Although it didn’t hook me, I watched 5 episodes in one evening when I gave the show another chance 3 1/2 months later.)
#2 – Tony and Ziva from NCIS
This couple remained at first and second place for most of the poll’s run, and lost by only 123 votes, a marked improvement from their #4 spot in the spring poll. With Tiva heating up, I wouldn’t be surprised if they win next year.
#1 – Castle and Beckett from Castle
The top favorite couple in the realistic division won a much closer race to again emerge victorious! While the spring poll coincided nicely with the season finale that brought these characters together, it’s great to know fans still love Caskett even with the will they/won’t they tension gone.
Guest post by Andy Johnson. If you would like to submit your own guest post, please contact me.
Some TV shows were taken from us before their time. In a respectful act of tribute, we share our top picks for TV shows that were cancelled prematurely, leaving us longing for more.
“Heroes”
After four seasons, NBC pulled the plug on this revolutionary show that seemed poised to take primetime viewing in an entirely new direction. The first season introduced us to ordinary people who discover they have super powers, including an indestructible cheerleader and one of the best super villains ever. The show captured the attention of a staggering 17 million viewers in the first season, but a steady decline in viewership, and a writers’ strike-induced eroding storyline, eventually led to the show’s demise. However, “Heroes” was poised to make a comeback and NBC should have given it at least one more season to go out the way it came in.
“My Own Worst Enemy”
“My Own Worst Enemy” had a smart, witty premise that also packed quite a punch. Christian Slater played the dual roles of regular suburban hubby and dad Henry Spivey, who was really a deadly secret agent called Edward Albright – except good, ol’ Henry had no idea about his double life. The twist was a first episode glitch that caused the worlds to collide, leaving Henry in some sticky situations he had no idea how to survive. The idea was fresh, the writing was good, the actors were entertaining and engaging (Alfre Woodard and Taylor Lautner also starred) – what gives? This show got its pink slip after only nine episodes, hardly long enough in our minds, and the 5.2 million viewers who got pulled in by the mind-control espionage spy games would agree.
“Pushing Daisies”
This delightfully imaginative show looked like nothing else on primetime. The characters, writing and intelligent, fast-paced, quirky humor matched the beautiful artistry of the show’s presentation. Ned the Piemaker barely got started using his ability to bring the dead back to life before ABC put “Pushing Daisies” on the chopping block. Once again, ratings and the unfortunate interference of the writers’ strike were blamed for the show’s early passing. Fans protested that the network didn’t give the show the proper promotional push to gain an audience that could appreciate the clever premise and artistic fantasy world of what may be the most original and visually satisfying show to air in decades.
“Reaper”
This show, about a slacker firstborn son promised to the devil in exchange for his father’s life, short-changed not only the ruler of the underworld but all the fans of this comic drama during its two-season run. Maybe it shouldn’t be surprising that a smart, original show like “Reaper” couldn’t survive on a network like the CW that tends more toward teen and young adult soap operas like “Gossip Girl” and “The Vampire Diaries,” but it still hurts. Perhaps the show was misplaced and that’s why it couldn’t gain the traction needed to endure, despite being well-received at Comic-Con and heroic attempts to keep the series alive as part of the Sci-Fi channel’s reboot as Syfy. Regardless, the show left viewers hanging and should have been given the chance to reap souls for another season or two.
“Arrested Development”
Anyone who ever caught even part of an episode of this sitcom knows that the cancellation of “Arrested Development” was one of the biggest TV travesties of all time. And people haven’t stopped talking about it since it happened in 2006. That alone has to say something about this in-your-face show about a dysfunctional family chasing the American dream. The show’s demise came on the heels of much critical acclaim and less regular viewership. It seems, however, that cutting this cult hit down in its prime prompted rumors that another season might be making an appearance on Netflix, but no one has confirmed this. [Katie: It has been confirmed – filming started this fall, with plans for a spring 2013 release.]
What other TV shows do you think got canceled too soon?
Andy has lived in several different areas of the United States, but always calls Utah home. He wrote articles for a local paper about outdoor recreation with pets before joining the USDish team in 2010. When he is not watching outdoor adventure programs on Animal Planet, The History Channel, or The National Geographic Channel, Andy can be found hiking in the red rock deserts of the Southwest.
Back when we did our favorite TV couples polls (with realistic and speculative divisions) last spring, I promised that in the fall, we’d have the winners from those polls face each other in an ultimate showdown. Friends, that time is now. The top 20 couples in each of the two polls have joined together with 10 newbie wild card competitors to determine which couples are truly TV’s top 10!
Since this poll will take place over Thanksgiving (for us Americans), I’ll keep the poll open through the end of the month, giving you a full 15 days to get the word out for your favorite couples. You can vote for up to 10 couples, but choose carefully, as you only get to vote once! (Oh, and be sure to enter our Friends giveaway!)
Unlike most of our polls, you can’t nominate other couples, since this is based on the results of two previous polls. Even for our ten wild card additions, I only choose couples that did not appear in the previous polls. Some were overlooked, some are newer shows or newer couples, but I chose 5 from speculative shows and 5 from shows without speculative elements: Brad and Jane from Happy Endings, Nick and Jess from New Girl, Auggie and Annie from Covert Affairs, Troy and Britta from Community, Daniel and Kate from Perception, Oliver and Laurel from Arrow, John and Rachel from Alphas, Fargo and Holly from Eureka, Nathan and Audrey from Haven, and Adama and Roslin from Battlestar Galactica.
Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, Pinterest, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Our toolbar at the bottom of the page has lots of quick links to help you share this post, or you can mouse over the image above!
Without further ado, choose your favorite 10 out of the 50 couples below! Poll will close Friday night, November 30th.
Which is your favorite TV couple? (Choose up to 10!)
Castle and Beckett (Castle) (9%, 1,283 Votes)
Tony and Ziva (NCIS) (8%, 1,160 Votes)
Elena and Damon (The Vampire Diaries) (5%, 680 Votes)
Derek and Meredith (Grey's Anatomy) (4%, 621 Votes)
Arthur and Gwen (Merlin) (4%, 555 Votes)
Scully and Mulder (The X-Files) (4%, 517 Votes)
Booth and Brennan (Bones) (3%, 474 Votes)
The Doctor and Rose (Doctor Who) (3%, 462 Votes)
McGee and Abby (NCIS) (3%, 461 Votes)
Barney and Robin (How I Met Your Mother) (3%, 398 Votes)
Chandler and Monica (Friends) (3%, 389 Votes)
Kensi and Deeks (NCIS: Los Angeles) (3%, 387 Votes)
Luke and Lorelai (Gilmore Girls) (2%, 330 Votes)
Rachel and Ross (Friends) (2%, 311 Votes)
Charming and Snow (Once Upon a Time) (2%, 304 Votes)
Marshall and Lily (How I Met Your Mother) (2%, 276 Votes)
Hodgins and Angela (Bones) (2%, 273 Votes)
Buffy and Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (2%, 265 Votes)
Nick and Jess (New Girl) (2%, 262 Votes)
Leonard and Penny (The Big Bang Theory) (2%, 244 Votes)
Peter and Olivia (Fringe) (2%, 240 Votes)
Chuck and Sarah (Chuck) (2%, 238 Votes)
Wash and Zoe (Firefly) (2%, 232 Votes)
Peter and Elizabeth (White Collar) (2%, 231 Votes)
Mal and Inara (Firefly) (2%, 227 Votes)
Leo and Piper (Charmed) (2%, 223 Votes)
Rumpelstiltskin and Belle (Once Upon a Time) (2%, 217 Votes)
Auggie and Annie (Covert Affairs) (1%, 206 Votes)
Sheldon and Amy (The Big Bang Theory) (1%, 192 Votes)
Buffy and Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (1%, 188 Votes)
Shawn and Juliet (Psych) (1%, 175 Votes)
Emma and Graham (Once Upon a Time) (1%, 170 Votes)
Michael and Fiona (Burn Notice) (1%, 169 Votes)
Adama and Roslin (Battlestar Galactica) (1%, 166 Votes)
Eric and Sookie (True Blood) (1%, 166 Votes)
Eric and Nell (NCIS: Los Angeles) (1%, 164 Votes)
Elena and Stefan (The Vampire Diaries) (1%, 163 Votes)
Simon and Kaylee (Firefly) (1%, 144 Votes)
Cole and Phoebe (Charmed) (1%, 138 Votes)
Willow and Oz (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (1%, 114 Votes)
Warner Bros. is sponsoring a giveaway of the complete series of FRIENDS (10 seasons!) on Blu-Ray! Keep reading for more details about the prize (worth $279.99) and enter to win! (The Raffercopter entry form is at the end of this post.)
Friends is an American sitcom about six friends struggling to survive on their own in Manhattan. In each episode, they find the companionship, comfort and support from each other to be the perfect solutions to the pressures of everyday life. The series stars ‘The Ones That Were There For You’ for ten seasons strong: Jennifer Aniston as “Rachel Green,” Courteney Cox as “Monica Geller,” Lisa Kudrow as “Phoebe Buffay,” Matt LeBlanc as “Joey Tribbiani,” Matthew Perry as “Chandler Bing,” and David Schwimmer as “Dr. Ross Geller.” Friendshas also featured many notable guest stars including Tom Selleck, Aisha Tyler, Jon Favreau, Anna Faris, Hank Azaria, Bruce Willis, Reese Witherspoon, Christina Applegate, Sean Penn, Jon Lovitz, Alec Baldwin, and many more.Friendswas created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman and aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television.
This ultimate collector’s set for the ultimate fan features over 110 hours of content – including all 236 original broadcast episodes released for the first time in the US, plus 20 hours of special features including over three hours of newly-added special features. New content includes a retrospective documentary with new interviews looking back at the influential 10 years of the series, never-before-released cast appearances, unaired footage, a new gag reel and more! All 10 seasons have been completely remastered in stunning 1080p high definition video with a 16×9 widescreen format and 5.1 audio. The Friends: Complete Series Blu-ray box set is presented in highly collectible new packaging consisting of a lenticular box cover, a hard-cover book that holds 21 Blu-ray discs, plus a 32-page episode guide.
In celebration of this release, Warner Bros. is helping fans relive the Friends experience with the apps below! Answer Friends trivia to win badges, find out which character you are most like (you’ll need the answer for one of our giveaway entry options!), and check back weekly for a new mashup video!
This giveaway will be open through Tuesday, November 27, 2012. Winner must have a US mailing address (no P.O. Box addresses).
It’s nearly Halloween, and while we’ve recently had a poll on favorite Halloween episodes, this week we’re going to look at scary shows! Whether the shows are all-out horror, or just have select creepy elements, you get to vote on which ones are your favorites, from the classic Twilight Zone to the brand new 666 Park Avenue!
You might have noticed we’re launching the poll on Tuesday instead of our normal Monday Madness slot. I’m doing this as an experiment. Since poll voting seems to go down on weekends, I thought it might be better for polls to end on Monday nights instead of Sunday nights, to give fans a final weekday to promote their show. We’ll see how that goes, and if you have any ideas for a catchy phrase to use for our polls if we decide to make that move permanent, please mention it in the comments!
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 10 of your favorite spooky shows! Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10! Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Get creative!
I know there are shows missing from the list, so please nominate shows I’ve overlooked! I’m being pretty loose with the term “scary” in this poll, but everyone has different levels of tolerance for suspense, gore, creatures, and surprises. If you’re not sure a show would fit, nominate it anyway!
Want more of a say in which shows make it onto the poll each week? (Shows on the initial list do have better odds to make it into the top 10.) Be sure to follow me on Twitter or like TV Breakroom on Facebook, since I usually ask for nominations before the new poll. Please help out with nominations! There are only so many shows I can watch personally, so I’m counting on you to fill me in!
Without further ado, here’s the poll! Voting ends around 1AM October 30th.
Which is your favorite scary TV show? (Choose up to 10!)
Just about all of broadcast TV’s new fall shows have aired at least two episodes now, so I think it’s time for a look at which ones soared, which ones got off to a rough start, and which ones nosedived. I’m dividing this list up into several groups so you can get an idea of what my preferences and interest levels were going in.
Shows I Haven’t Seen and Never Plan To:
Out of the 20 new shows that have debuted so far, the list of those I haven’t seen is pretty small: 7. I hate country music, so Nashville was out. The rest (Made In Jersey, The Mob Doctor, Partners, Emily Owens MD, Chicago Fire, and Vegas) I wasn’t interested in for one reason or another. One is already canceled, two more aren’t far behind, and none of the seven shows has been a breakout hit. I feel pretty happy with my choice not to watch them, and expect maybe 1-2 to reach a second season (not holding my breath, though).
Shows I Never Planned to Watch but Did See the Pilot:
For two shows, I checked out the pilots knowing I’d never commit to watching the show. It was easy to tell from the previews that 666 Park Avenue wasn’t my type of show, but I had a chance to watch the pilot early as a TV blogger, so I tried it out. It seemed well done, but I didn’t enjoy it. The New Normal I watched out of a morbid curiosity to see how awful it would be, and aside from one or two heartfelt moments, it was utterly terrible. I didn’t laugh once.
Comedies I Thought Would Be Awful but Didn’t Mind:
Another show I got a chance to watch early was The Neighbors, which wasn’t as terrible as the previews made it out to be. I’ve seen the first two episodes, and might watch more if I’m caught up on most of my other shows and in the mood for a comedy. Guys With Kids I didn’t intend to see, by my siblings said it was pretty good, so I watched a few episodes. Both shows are more family-oriented comedies, which usually bore me, and I don’t really laugh during them, but I like having extra comedy shows to watch on dreary days.
Comedies I Like but Wouldn’t Cry Over Their Cancellation:
Every new comedy not in the above lists fits in this section. Many of them are great, but I haven’t gotten attached to any comedies so far this season. That’s probably a good thing, as Animal Practice has already been canceled. Go On is probably the best of the lot, and I expect it will return for a second season, but The Mindy Project (my pilot review here) and Ben and Kate (pilot review here) are far from out of danger despite their full-season orders. These shows are heartwarming and humorous, but they’re not laugh out loud funny. Plus, none of the characters grip me in that “I would hate to see them go” way. It could come with time, and I’ll keep watching these shows until they get terrible or get canceled.
Dramas That Didn’t Wow Me In Their First Two Episodes:
Revolution was hyped to be awesome, Beauty and the Beast was critiqued to be terrible. I was disappointed by Revolution’s pilot, but enough was done right that I gave the show another episode. When Miles was still the only character I enjoyed watching, and the rest of the show failed to interest me, I decided to stop watching. It’s too bad, because from the premise it seemed like exactly the type of show I would enjoy.
I just watched the second episode of Beauty and the Beast, and really noticed the terrible, terrible dialogue people were complaining about in the pilot (my review of it here). I so want to love this show, but the writers are making it very hard. I’m still not sure if I’ll watch a third episode. I want it to pull a Vampire Diaries and start getting really good after a few episodes, but I don’t know if there is enough backstory for the mythology of the show to grow. Also, in the second episode, several procedural issues bugged me (Don’t uniforms clear buildings? Are detectives allowed to be present during the autopsy of someone they killed?), and Cat had a sister appear out of nowhere. The first episode got good ratings for the CW, but the second quickly dropped, so it might not get time to improve. Might be better to replace it with the midseason Cult, to bring over Matt Davis (Alaric) fans from The Vampire Diaries. (I know I had no plans to watch the show, but after marathoning through The Vampire Diaries, Matt Davis has become one of my favorite actors, so I definitely plan to give Cult a few episodes to impress me.)
As I was writing this, I kept thinking, I wonder what Revolution and Beauty and the Beast would have been like with Joss Whedon in charge? Can’t wait for S.H.I.E.L.D.!
Dramas I Love:
The three drama shows I was most looking forward to turned out to be the ones I loved most this season. My favorite pilot episode, Last Resort (my review here), hasn’t quite lived up to its potential in subsequent episodes, but it still keeps me glued to the screen almost every minute. Its low ratings don’t signal much hope for renewal, but ABC shows regularly do poorly in that timeslot. ABC did order 2 more scripts for the show, so it’s unlikely to get pulled from the schedule immediately (I was starting to worry about that), but that may be just to give the show some sort of resolution. All the same, I’ve tried to temper my attachment to the show and just enjoy it while it lasts.
Elementary (my review of the pilot here) has been just as awesome as I hoped. I’ve been completely won over to the idea of a female Watson, and it’s been nice watching their friendship slowly grow over the past few episodes. Both annoy each other like crazy, yet their respect and admiration for each other is beginning to build. The cases seem to have an extra twist compared to most crime drama shows, which fits well with the need to bring in a consultant. I’m really sorry for the people who have a hard time understanding Jonny Lee Miller’s brisk British accent, but I feel the speed helps convey Sherlock’s fast mental process. Oh, and the opening credits are amazing:
Last but not least, Arrow has been amazing so far. While the pilot (my review here) had a good deal of the plot revealed in preview clips and therefore wasn’t quite as engaging, the second episode (my review here) had everything I was looking for: great action sequences, insightful character moments, and hints at series-long mythology-building. The second episode got the exact same excellent rating as the first (double that of typical CW “steady performers”), so I’m looking forward to this show being around for a while.
Conclusion:
Three great dramas. Three good comedies. That’s my haul from broadcast TV’s new fall shows, and I managed to find a show I liked on every single network. I think 3, maybe 4, will stick around for a second season.
This week, Monday Madness returns with a look at those TV characters who buck the 18-49 demographic trend and prove that interesting characters make for great TV, no matter their age!
One important note: this poll does not include characters who have lived for many decades (or even centuries), but through supernatural means still look and act like 20somethings. So no vampires, Alphas who never age, or characters frozen in time for 28 years, unless they were 50+ beforehand. I tried to find actual ages for characters closer to the cut-off point, but when in doubt, I went by the portraying actor’s age when the show came out. And for long-running shows, some characters may have been under 50 at the beginning, but aren’t now.
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 10 of your favorite TV characters over 50. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10! Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Get creative!
Important: I know there are dozens of TV characters over 50 who are missing from this list. You can nominate characters I missed in the comments until Thursday night, and I may add them to the poll (characters from live-action scripted shows only, please, and the character must be a main cast member or appear in at least 10 episodes of the show).
Want more of a say in who makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter or like TV Breakroom on Facebook, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll. Please help out with nominations! There are only so many shows I can watch personally, so I’m counting on you to fill me in!
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 1AM October 23rd.
Who is your favorite TV character over 50? (Choose up to 10!)
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