Broadcast Freshmen Grading – How Did I Do With 2011-2012’s New Shows?

Aside from a few midseason debuts and several likely-canceled shows, ABC, CBS, the CW, Fox, and NBC have all made their decisions about which new shows are returning, and which aren’t. How did I do at picking which shows to watch this year?

ABC

Canceled: Charlie’s Angels, GCB, Man Up, Missing, Pan Am, The River, Work It

Renewed: Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23, Last Man Standing, Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Scandal, Suburgatory

I tried out Missing but wasn’t hooked. I fell in love with Once Upon a Time and Suburgatory, and my feelings for the B—- are a little mixed, but generally positive. I would have tried Revenge if I had time, and I planned to preview Scandal but was deterred by less-than-stellar reviews.

I give myself an A+ for ABC.

 

CBS

Canceled: A Gifted Man, How to Be a Gentleman, NYC 22, Rob, Unforgettable

Renewed: 2 Broke Girls, Person of Interest

I watched How to Be a Gentleman since it was the only 1/2 hour show in an empty timeslot. I disliked both Rob and Unforgettable, giving up on episode 2 for both after allowing the pilot a little leeway. I watched 2 Broke Girls and Person of Interest from the start, and liked both (though 2 Broke Girls has degraded some over the year).

I give myself an A+ for CBS.

 

The CW

Canceled: Ringer, The Secret Circle

Renewed: Hart of Dixie

I only watched Ringer, which I wanted to love more than I did. Sarah Michelle Gellar and the unexpected yumminess of Ioan Gruffudd kept me watching through a rough start, but I’m glad I saw the whole thing through till the end. I watched the Hart of Dixie pilot, but medicial + the South wasn’t my cup of tea.

I give myself a C- for the CW.

 

Fox

Canceled: Alcatraz, The Finder, I Hate My Teenage Daughter, Terra Nova

Renewed: New Girl, Touch

I watched two new Fox shows, The Finder and New Girl. Didn’t even try the others. New Girl took a bit to grow on me, but I loved The Finder from the start, and am glad I watched it.

I give myself a C+ for Fox.

 

NBC

Canceled: Are You There, Chelsea?, Awake, Bent, Best Friends Forever, Free Agents, The Playboy Club, Prime Suspect, The Firm

Renewed: Grimm, Smash, Up All Night, Whitney

NBC canceled 8 new shows (of which I watched 3), and renewed 4 (of which I watched 2). I didn’t watch a single episode of the other 7. Grimm and Smash deserved the renewal for being fresh and catchy, something that Awake’s excellent but dour presentation could have used. Cop shows seem to work best with a bit of lightheartedness thrown in, a fact that Grimm realized by bringing in Monroe more. Awake’s twin tragedies prevented all but a slight wry sense of humor. The conspiracy behind Awake’s two realities could have counterbalanced that, but the show’s creators seemed to be saving most of that for future seasons, which ironically prevented future seasons by not hooking viewers. Bent and Free Agents were under-promoted and misrepresented, which almost caused me to miss out on them – how much more a casual TV viewer?

I give myself a C for NBC.

 

What new shows did you watch this year?

Arrow, Beauty and the Beast TV Shows Picked Up, Nikita, Hart of Dixie Renewed By The CW – TVLine

The CW has renewed Nikita for its 3rd season (which also makes a 4th season more likely), and picked up 5 pilots to series: Arrow, Beauty and the Beast, The Carrie Diaries, Cult, and First Cut. No mention has been made of the much buzzed about Hunger-Games-meets-The-Bachelor drama The Selection.

Update: more renewal news! Fellow bubble show  Hart of Dixie has been renewed (anyone think they won’t pair it with First Cut?). Also, Gossip Girl was picked up for a shortened 11-episode season 6. Already renewed: Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries, and 90210, bringing the CW’s total to 11 hour-long shows. Freshmen dramas Ringer and The Secret Circle have been canceled.

The link below leads to full descriptions of the new shows picked up to series:

The Carrie Diaries, Arrow and Beauty and the Beast TV Shows Picked Up By The CW – TVLine.

Continue reading Arrow, Beauty and the Beast TV Shows Picked Up, Nikita, Hart of Dixie Renewed By The CW – TVLine

NBC Renews Community, ABC Renews Once Upon a Time, Castle, Suburgatory, and more!

Just in this evening, NBC has renewed Community for a shortened 13-episode season 4! Unlike the network’s 30 Rock renewal, this is not being billed as a final season, so I’m hopeful that the show will get a fifth season, or perhaps garner additional episode orders (the show would need 4 more episodes to reach the “magic” 88 episodes usually required for syndication).

Also, ABC has renewed freshmen shows Once Upon a Time, Revenge, and Suburgatory, as well as veteran shows Castle, Grey’s Anatomy, The Middle, and Modern Family. (If Joss Whedon ever does a broadcast TV show again, it should be on ABC. They seem to like his people – Nathan Fillion, Adam Tudyk, Jane Espenson.)

ABC’s Cougar Town is moving to TBS for a fourth and possibly fifth season (Community’s Abed should be pretty happy about that).

With Awake and Bent unlikely to be renewed by NBC, the only shows I’m waiting to hear about now are on the CW.

Alcatraz Cancelled — Fox Axes The Finder Too – TVLine

Not a bit surprised, given the ratings for both, but I was hoping against hope The Finder would make it. As it turned out, despite making it to #4 in this site’s poll for favorite new shows, it’s the first of my long-shot shows to fall.

And Fox rubbed salt in the wound by renewing Touch, a show whose previews put me to sleep. At least they’re letting House wrap up properly. And renewing Bones and New Girl.

(I will not think of Firefly and Dollhouse. I will not think of Firefly and Dollhouse.) Okay, I will, because Joss Whedon can rub the success of The Avengers into Fox’s face now.

Alcatraz Cancelled — Fox Axes The Finder Too – TVLine.

Mindy Kaling Comedy, The Goodwin Games and More Picked Up By Fox – TVLine

It’s interesting how these show pickups let you know far more about what will happen on the shows you already watch! For example, since Mindy Kaling’s OB/GYN comedy has been picked up, Kelly will be leaving The Office (or her role will be greatly diminished). And since The Goodwin Games stars How I Met Your Mother’s Becky Newton (as well as being created by the minds in charge of HIMYM), it’s fairly certain Quinn won’t be walking down the aisle towards Barney in Monday’s season finale. UPDATE: Mindy Kaling’s show has been given the title It’s Messy.

Fox’s third comedy pickup, Ned Fox is My Manny (did the show’s creators purposely chose the last name with hopes of getting picked up by this particular network?), puts a twist on the uptight woman vs. lovable rogue cliche by making them siblings. UPDATE: Its new title is Ben & Kate.

None of these shows are screaming at me to watch them, but I’ll probably try out all the pilots, because they all seem far more likeable than NBC’s new shows.

Mindy Kaling Comedy, The Goodwin Games and More Picked Up By Fox – TVLine.

NCIS Los Angeles — Eric Christian Olsen, Daniela Ruah — Season 3 Episode 22 – TVLine

Check out this uber-fun interview with Eric Christian Olsen and Daniela Ruah (aka Deeks and Kensi on NCIS: Los Angeles)! I haven’t even finished reading the whole thing, because I knew I needed to share it immediately. They’re talking about tonight’s episode, in which Kensi and Deeks go undercover as a married couple!

NCIS Los Angeles — Eric Christian Olsen, Daniela Ruah — Season 3 Episode 22 – TVLine.

USA Network Invites ‘Burn Notice’ Fans To Vote On The New Main Title Sequence For Season Six – Ratings | TVbytheNumbers

I guess USA Network has learned their lesson about messing with show intros without getting fan input! (Fans were upset when White Collar changed their opening titles without warning to cheesy art gallery-style pictures with completely different music that didn’t match the theme of the show. USA let fans vote on reverting to the old intro with adding cast or keeping the new one; fans chose the old.)

It’s hard for me to imagine Burn Notice without “My name is Michael Westen, I used to be a spy, until . . .” I hope at least one of the options still incorporates part of that, though “regular” credits would be nice, too.

The voting starts May 9, and will be open for two weeks. You can vote on the show’s Facebook page or a special site, as well as through USA’s Character Chatter. The winning intro will debut when Burn Notice returns on June 14. Full press release linked below.

USA Network Invites ‘Burn Notice’ Fans To Vote On The New Main Title Sequence For Season Six – Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.

Top 10 Favorite New Shows

The poll for favorite new show garnered much less activity than I anticipated, and ended with 568 voters, less than 10% than the past several polls received. Perhaps it’s because new shows don’t have an as-established fan base? (In contrast, the poll for long-running shows garnered the most non-spam votes of any poll.)

As a result, it was a close race – in fact, eleven runner-up shows were 10 votes or less away from making it into the top 10. Here are the shows that DID make it:

Number 10 – Revenge

Continue reading Top 10 Favorite New Shows

Monday Madness: Favorite Series or Season Finale

This week on Monday Madness, it’s time to vote for your favorite TV finales! This poll is for season and series finales of both cable and broadcast shows. But this week there’s a twist – for the first seven days, you can nominate your favorite finales and I’ll add them to the poll! I’m doing this because I got so few nominations, and I didn’t want to limit the poll to just my favorites.

This poll will be open for TWO weeks, and you can choose up to 10 of your favorite finales. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10! And as shows finish up their runs this year, you can nominate them for a spot on the poll!

Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll.

Without further ado, here’s the poll for this AND next week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 1AM May 21th.

Update: this poll has closed. I planned to do a results post like I do with other Monday Madness polls, but I realized any pictures I posted would be full of spoilers (or else very boring). So I decided to skip that part this time.

What's your favorite series or season finale? (Choose up to 10)

  • Castle - season 4 finale "Always" (22%, 529 Votes)
  • Castle - season 3 finale "Knockout" (13%, 322 Votes)
  • Once Upon a Time - season 1 finale "A Land Without Magic" (9%, 223 Votes)
  • Leverage - season 2 finale "The Maltese Falcon Job" (7%, 161 Votes)
  • Leverage - season 4 finale - "The Last Dam Job" (5%, 130 Votes)
  • Angel - series finale "Not Fade Away" (3%, 73 Votes)
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer - season 5 finale "The Gift" (3%, 68 Votes)
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer - season 2 finale "Becoming: Part 2" (3%, 62 Votes)
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer - series finale "Chosen" (3%, 61 Votes)
  • Sherlock - season 2 finale "The Reichenbach Fall" (2%, 60 Votes)
  • NCIS - season 6 finale "Aliyah" (2%, 55 Votes)
  • Bones - season 4 finale "The End in the Beginning" (2%, 51 Votes)
  • White Collar - season 1 finale "Out of the Box" (2%, 46 Votes)
  • Chuck - season 2 finale "Chuck Versus the Ring" (2%, 45 Votes)
  • Bones - season 3 finale "The Pain in the Heart" (2%, 42 Votes)
  • House - season 4 finale "Wilson's Heart" (2%, 42 Votes)
  • Supernatural - season 3 finale "No Rest for the Wicked" (2%, 41 Votes)
  • Supernatural - season 5 finale "Swan Song" (2%, 40 Votes)
  • How I Met Your Mother - season 1 finale "Come On" (2%, 39 Votes)
  • Community - season 2 finale "For a Few Paintballs More" (2%, 37 Votes)
  • Smallville - series finale "Finale" (1%, 36 Votes)
  • Dollhouse - series finale "Epitaph Two: Return" (1%, 35 Votes)
  • Warehouse 13 - season 1 finale "MacPherson" (1%, 32 Votes)
  • Burn Notice - season 4 finale "Last Stand" (1%, 25 Votes)
  • The Office - season 3 finale "The Job" (1%, 23 Votes)
  • NCIS - season 2 finale "Twilight" (1%, 22 Votes)
  • Newhart - series finale "The Last Newhart" (1%, 19 Votes)
  • The Mentalist - season 3 finale "Strawberries and Cream" (1%, 14 Votes)
  • The Finder - series finale "The Boy with the Bucket" (0%, 12 Votes)
  • Numb3rs - series finale "Cause and Effect" (0%, 10 Votes)
  • Robin Hood - season 2 finale "We Are Robin Hood" (0%, 10 Votes)
  • The Mentalist - season 2 finale "Red Sky in the Morning" (0%, 9 Votes)
  • St. Elsewhere - series finale "The Last One" (0%, 8 Votes)
  • Community - season 3 finale - "Introduction to Finality" (0%, 8 Votes)
  • Dallas - season 2 finale "A House Divided" (Who Shot J.R.?) (0%, 7 Votes)
  • Numb3rs - season 5 finale "Angels and Devils" (0%, 6 Votes)
  • GCB - series finale "Liplocks and Revelations" (0%, 2 Votes)
  • Dynasty - season 5 finale "Royal Wedding" (0%, 2 Votes)

Total Voters: 965

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5 Long-Shot TV Shows I Want To See Renewed

I’ve watched the ratings and predictions, and it seems like many of the shows I love are coming back next year. But there are a handful of shows that seem headed toward cancellation that I’m hoping against hope will beat the odds and get another shot. These aren’t shows that have been yanked from the schedule (like Free Agents), or that spent a lot of time in the danger zone, yet got renewed (like Fringe) or will likely be renewed (like Community). These are shows that most TV experts consider “bubble shows” or “long-shots” or “beyond hope.” I do think perhaps one of them will be fortunate enough to get a renewal; I’d be very happy if 2 or more made it.

UPDATE: I was correct. One – and only one – of these shows did get renewed: Nikita. Which if I’d had to guess which one might make it, I would have chosen.

Here are the shows, in no particular order, that in my perfect dream world would be coming back in 2012-2013:

Nikita

This is the show that got me to take the CW seriously for the first time. It perfectly filled the void left by Dollhouse’s cancellation (except for the mind-bending stuff). I love the “family of rogue agents” that has formed in this second season. Most recent spy shows have a lighter, humorous feel. This show manages to remain dark, but still be awesomely fun to watch.

Ringer

I started watching this show because of the intriguing premise and because I was curious to see what Sarah Michelle Gellar was like as not-Buffy. I stayed because of Ioan Gruffudd. I’d seen him in several movies (102 Dalmatians, Amazing Grace, Fantastic Four), but I didn’t fall in love with his acting until this show. It was nice to have Veronica Mars’ Jason Dohring around again too. The show was almost too twisty (I found myself saving up several episodes to watch so I could avoid agonizing cliffhangers), but it was very engaging and always kept me wanting more.

The Finder

My brother thought this show was on USA Network, and the humor on it matches the tone of that network perfectly. Walter could be Shawn Spencer’s long-lost cousin. I just love how zany and lighthearted and pure fun this show is. Plus it’s much more flexible than typical crime shows – finding things can take you anywhere. It’s also nice to have Bones characters dropping by occasionally.

Awake

I’ll admit, this was much more of a crime drama than a mind-twister than I was expecting. Still, it’s excellent, and piecing clues together from different worlds adds a great new dimension. I realize you can’t give away the entire “story behind the story” in the first season, but I really want to know more of what’s going on. Hopefully the show will get a second season (even if abbreviated) to dive into things, like Dollhouse was able to get.

Bent

This under-promoted comedy won my heart by the first episode. It’s not just the two leads, who have great chemistry, it’s the entire fun family formed by Alex’s daughter and sister, and Pete’s dad and crew. I couldn’t wait to see where their adventures would take them next.

Holy Moly! Netflix Eyes… ‘Jericho?’ – Ratings | TVbytheNumbers

Of all the “Netflix Saving . . .” rumors going around, this one has a far better chance of actually happening, since Netflix is the one approaching CBS about the project. Readers of this site may remember that the already canceled once and saved Jericho made it into the Top 10 Canceled Shows That Should Return. Will the show beat the odds yet again?

Holy Moly! Netflix Eyes… ‘Jericho?’ – Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.

Top 10 Favorite Long-Running Shows

Last week’s poll scored an impressive 8438 voters, and was the most-viewed poll yet! All those views caused the site to even crash at one point (I’ve enabled caching to prevent that problem in the future).

This poll’s nominations were the most controversial yet, with many complaints about great shows that had been left off (I’d severely underestimated the number of shows that have reached the season 7 benchmark), even after I’d tacked on 5 more shows to the initial 45. Speculative shows secured an early lead, but eventually the large fan base of crime shows made a significant dent in the top 10. Which show won? Keep reading!

Number 10: Criminal Minds

Continue reading Top 10 Favorite Long-Running Shows

Monday Madness: Favorite New Show

This week on Monday Madness, it’s time to vote for your favorite new TV shows! This poll is for all live-action scripted shows that aired their first US episode between June 1, 2011 and April 30, 2012, and includes both broadcast and cable shows.

This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 10 of your favorite new shows. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10!

Even though there are 50 options on this list, I know there are some shows I left out (I think there are only a few canceled shows or lesser-known cable shows left out this week)! As always, you can cast write-in ballots (for new live-action scripted shows only please) by leaving a comment. Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll.

Next week’s poll will focus on favorite season and series finales. Please nominate your favorite finales by leaving a comment! In your comment, be sure to note the show, season, episode title, and not-too-spoilery descriptive phrase (think of what a promo for that episode would say). For example: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, season 2, “Becoming, Part Two.” Aided by an unlikely ally, Buffy must face Angel to save the world.

Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 1AM May 7th.

UPDATE: This poll has closed. You can view the top ten list here.

This poll sponsored by Nannerbug Designs. Contact me if you would like to sponsor next week’s poll!

What's your favorite new show? (Choose up to 10!)

  • Once Upon a Time (10%, 168 Votes)
  • Person of Interest (9%, 144 Votes)
  • Grimm (9%, 144 Votes)
  • The Finder (7%, 111 Votes)
  • Bent (5%, 78 Votes)
  • New Girl (4%, 70 Votes)
  • Alphas (3%, 55 Votes)
  • 2 Broke Girls (3%, 48 Votes)
  • Falling Skies (3%, 48 Votes)
  • Revenge (2%, 41 Votes)
  • Suburgatory (2%, 40 Votes)
  • Alcatraz (2%, 39 Votes)
  • GCB (2%, 39 Votes)
  • Touch (2%, 38 Votes)
  • Awake (2%, 36 Votes)
  • The Secret Circle (2%, 36 Votes)
  • Terra Nova (2%, 35 Votes)
  • Smash (2%, 34 Votes)
  • Ringer (2%, 33 Votes)
  • Hart of Dixie (2%, 33 Votes)
  • Scandal (2%, 32 Votes)
  • Suits (2%, 30 Votes)
  • American Horror Story (2%, 29 Votes)
  • Last Man Standing (2%, 26 Votes)
  • Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 (1%, 25 Votes)
  • Franklin & Bash (1%, 25 Votes)
  • Switched at Birth (1%, 23 Votes)
  • Homeland (1%, 21 Votes)
  • Pan Am (1%, 21 Votes)
  • Unforgettable (1%, 19 Votes)
  • Up All Night (1%, 18 Votes)
  • Necessary Roughness (1%, 17 Votes)
  • Missing (1%, 17 Votes)
  • A Gifted Man (1%, 16 Votes)
  • The River (1%, 16 Votes)
  • Spartacus: Vengence (1%, 13 Votes)
  • Whitney (1%, 12 Votes)
  • Prime Suspect (1%, 9 Votes)
  • NYC 22 (0%, 8 Votes)
  • House of Lies (0%, 8 Votes)
  • Are You There, Chelsea? (0%, 8 Votes)
  • The Firm (0%, 7 Votes)
  • Best Friends Forever (0%, 7 Votes)
  • I Hate My Teenage Daughter (0%, 6 Votes)
  • Rob (0%, 2 Votes)
  • Boss (0%, 2 Votes)
  • Charlie's Angels (0%, 2 Votes)
  • How to Be a Gentleman (0%, 1 Votes)
  • Free Agents (0%, 1 Votes)
  • Man Up (0%, 0 Votes)

Total Voters: 568

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NBC Moves Community Finale into May Sweeps – TVLine

Three new episodes of Community in one night? Yup, that’s what NBC is doing this May 17, which allows the double-episode finale to air during May sweeps. Usually back-to-back episodes signal burnoff, but in this case it’s a vote of confidence for Community, which NBC thinks will do better than the extra episode of Awake, previously scheduled to fill that slot. Instead of a double episode finale night, the finale of Awake has been pushed back to May 24 (after sweeps).

NBC will air one episode of Community in its normal 8PM slot, then the 30 Rock finale, then the final two-episode Community finale from 9-10PM.

NBC Moves Community Finale into May Sweeps – TVLine.