Hmm... y'know, I didn't think about On Demand. They're going want another $14 per month for it though -- and that wouldn't be worth it to us. We're increasingly looking at things though the lens of "compare this to just waiting for the DVDs/BDs". We'd rather spend $20 per month on Neflix for three months per year instead of $14 more per month for cable for twelve months per year.
*** Television, Fall 2009 ***
- Thread starter bicker
- Start date
Essentially, as far as I'm concerned, there are only two networks that operate at 10:00 pm. Fox and CW turn that hour over to their local affiliates, while NBC has decided to cede that hour to Jay Leno, which we have no interest in. So three-way conflicts are impossible, in our home, at 10:00 pm. Given that, and that we have a dual tuner DVR, it is almost pointless for us to think about the 10:00 pm timeslot as a timeslot that we need to think about in the context of what we will watch and what we'll have to perhaps miss.bicker said:
None of these shows were broadcast in this timeslot last fall. Private Practice moved here in December, after Life on Mars faltered, and the Mentalist was one of the two best new shows of the year, last year, in its Tuesday 9:00 pm timeslot. The Mentalist's move from Tuesday 9:00 pm to Thursday 10:00 pm is considered, in the industry, a promotion (Thursday being the most lucrative night of television). Of course, with my wife and I often asleep by 10:00 pm, we don't necessarily see things that way, but the DVR kind-of obsures the 10:00 pm aspect from our view anyway.
We will record both The Mentalist and Private Practice, but with very different motivations in mind for each. There are about 30 television series that we're going to be recording on the DVR this fall: The Mentalist is at the top of that list while Private Practice is a program that we're recording just to store, and perhaps use to fill in the gap that typically opens up between Thanksgiving and the Superbowl, when networks put regular series into reruns, and so there are no new episodes of the series we really like.
I am a little worried for The Mentalist, though. Will its fans follow it to Thursday? Will they stay up later to watch it? I sure hope so.
ABC replaces the singularly unique and wonderful Pushing Daisies with a couple of new sitcoms. Seems like an unfair bargain to me.bicker said:
And a bit of a strange choice, to me, because it seems to me that the networks have been deliberately working not to put each others' sitcoms up against each other. Last year, Fox had Sunday night; CBS had Monday night and Wednesday night 8PM-9PM, while Fox had Wednesday 9PM-10PM; NBC, of course, had their "Must-See" Thursday night; and ABC basically just had Samantha Who. Now, for the first time since Fox's ill-fated attempt to go up against NBC in 2006, we see sitcoms going up against sitcoms between the Big 4 networks. My guess is that CBS is going to win. ABC has, as alluded to above, very few sitcoms recently, and none really successful. Hank and The Middle don't seem like winners to my wife and I. Of course, we're not really sitcom people, anymore.We're also not reality show people anymore, which means that CW and Fox are basically lost to us as well, in this timeslot.
Leaving only Mercy, which was rushed into production early, due to the illness of Parenthood star Maura Tierney, and the subsequent swap of Parenthood to the winter and Mercy to the fall. It is really an unfortunately situation for all concerned. For Tierney, of course -- that's obvious. For Parenthood, in general, though assuming Tierney recovers quickly and they get their act together for the winter, the show, at least, could end up being least adversely affected. The winter is not necessarily a bad time to premiere.
But Mercy faces two risks: First, of course, the fact that they were rushed into production unexpectedly. The other is that NBC seemed to have deliberately split up their new medically-oriented dramas, Mercy and Trauma, ordering just 13 episodes of each, planning Trauma for the fall and Mercy for the winter. Now both medical shows will be presented this fall. (The irony of this being due to the illness of the the second-to-last lead actor of the long-running medical drama ER isn't lost on me, either.)
We'll surely record Mercy. I mean, no sense in leaving the DVR completely idle during the timeslot, eh? Mercy has mostly female leads, and so will pull in a highly desirable demographic, I suspect. I happen to not like James LeGros... I don't know why, but I've hated everything he's ever been in, even episodes of my favorite shows where he was just a featured guest star. :shrug: The only other regular I've seen a lot of is Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Buffy the Vampire Slayer's sister. As I mentioned elsewhere, I'll have a little trouble seeing her as anything else, but I suppose I can get over that more readily than my dislike of LeGros.
Just from watching the commercials, I get the feeling that I'd like Mercy better if they pulled back from the ensemble approach, with the three female leads and the various other men and women they have to work with, and focus instead on the character that seemed to be most likely to be put up front, Taylor Schilling as Veronica Flanagan. I've never seen her before (no big surprise -- this is only her second equity role!!! the other role being a very minor role in an independent film), but heck from the three or four seconds I have seen, I think she could be very good as the anchor of the show.
All-in-all, I think this timeslot isn't going to be a major contributor to our viewing enjoyment, this fall.
Whatever happened to Wednesday 9:00 pm? I seem to remember that this timeslot and Tuesday 9:00 used to be the most conflict-prone for me. As recently as last year, we faced a conflict between Private Practice, Criminal Minds, and Life. Now, it has been realized that Private Practice cannot hold its own without following the powerhouse it was spun-off from; Criminal Minds simply isn't as good with Mandy Patinkin gone; and Life didn't last.bicker said:
ABC fills in this gap with new comedies, and to me it seems like the best two new comedies they've come up with in many years (except for Samantha Who). However, that's not saying much. ABC and comedy just don't see to go together in my book. Modern Family stars Ed O'Neill and Julie Bowen; Cougar Town stars Courtney Cox. I could see either doing well, and who knows? maybe they're feed off each other and help ABC win this timeslot sometimes.
It could happen.
Fox has had trouble filling this timeslot with something worthwhile. Kitchen Nightmares did okay here, and perhaps they'll put it back here when it returns. However, they're staking their fortunes on Glee. They did something rather strange with Glee: They presented the pilot in May. Networks used to present pilots on air, many years ago, but now most save the pilots to serve as the series premiere in the fall. I'm not sure if Fox will get any mileage out of showing one episode followed by a three month break before showing more episodes. I wasn't impressed with the pilot, but it wasn't aimed at me.
CW also has struggled in this timeslot. This time, they're putting in what seems to me to be yet-another One Tree Hill or Gossip Girl or 90210 clone. They even have put forward their preferred way for TXTers to abbreviate the show (TBL), as if acknowledging their intention to try to capitalize on the teenage social networking infrastructure to foster this show. I don't begrudge CW its very consistent focus on this one segment of the audience. If you give them a home so consistently serving their needs, they are indeed less likely to stray to other networks to try out their offerings aimed at this sector, and perhaps even by being so consistent in appealing to this audience, you might even be able to get them to watch more than they would have otherwise. However, I cannot help but remember a few shows (Veronica Mars, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) that bridged the gap and appealed both to teens and adults at the same time.
And besides, CW faces competition for their audience in this timeslot like no other, going up against Glee on Fox. I almost think they would have been better off trying to fight fire with fire, moving Smallville to this timeslot. Of course, that would leave them will inadequate firepower to get people to start watching CW on Friday night (but I think that's a useless gesture anyway, given that they're only offering one hour of original programming).
That leaves the two veterans, L&O:SVU and Criminal Minds. As I mentioned elsewhere, we simply don't watch any L&O or CSI programs (not on principle; just as it turned out), and Criminal Minds has lost our interest.
We'll be recording the ABC comedies, maybe we'll watch them, too.
These 10:00 pm timeslots are pretty pointless to comment about. Fox and CW don't even operate, and NBC isn't worth mentioning. So ABC and CBS go head to head, mano a mano, each night, for the hearts and minds -- and eyes -- of the American drama viewer.bicker said:
ABC puts Eastwick into the ill-fated Lipstick Jungle/Dirty Sexy Money/The Nine/Invasion timeslot. Yeah, ABC has pretty-much failed with everything they've tried in this timeslot since 20/20. Without NBC, perhaps they have a chance now. I don't think that Eastwick is going to be the turning point, though. It's based on a movie that it cannot help but pale by comparison to. The actor playing Van Horne would need to have been someone much more substantial, and in the end, it way too young for the role.
I'm not sure why we're even recording this, much less why we're planning on watching it. I think I need to revisit this, pushing Eastwick to the bottom of our Season Pass list.
Is there any doubt that CSI:NY will win the timeslot? None here.
This was a pretty competitive timeslot last year, with House going up against NCIS. House is on Monday now, so it doesn't have to move in January to make room for American Idol perhaps. So NCIS has a bit less competition, at least for its core audience. And paired with its spin-off, with a lot of planned cross-over, it should be a pretty solid night for CBS, at least in terms of dramas.bicker said:
Some strange things going on in this timeslot, though, on both ABC and Fox: Both shows listed (Shark Tank and Hell's Kitchen) started over the summer, and end in October. So something else will slide into this timeslot in the middle of the fall. In the case of ABC, it is the reboot of the sci-fi series "V". (That seems to not be a great move: It introduces a holiday hiatus into a heavily serialized drama, something which networks have learned the hard way is not a good idea. I have no idea why ABC didn't wait, like they originally planned to, to introduced "V" in January.) In the case of Fox, So You Think You Can Dance, which begins the season at 9:00 pm, expands to two hours once Hell's Kitchen is over, starting in this timeslot.
As it is, lots of reality in this timeslot, with Shark Tank, Hell's Kitchen/So You Think You Can Dance, and The Biggest Loser. I know that different people have different interests, but I've got to believe that there are some people who simply like reality shows, and other people who don't, so putting a lot of reality shows up against each other is only going to help the drama, and hurt the reality shows, overall, eh?
CW offers the second season of 90210. Not much to say there. As I alluded to earlier, CW has targeted a specific audiences and is going to capitalize on their focus. Best of luck to them.
We'll be recording and watching NCIS, and later, "V".
Like Wednesday 9:00 pm, this was once a storied timeslot in my experience, which is no longer as competitive. Audiences are actually higher on Tuesday than Thursday, if I remember correctly, but commercials broadcast on Tuesday tend to be more of the "think well of us" commercials, rather than the "come buy something over the weekend" commercials, and so aren't as valuable. We can clearly see how the networks have shifted their better programming to the end of the week. (The main exception, American Idol, has remained on Tuesday/Wednesday, despite a lot of shaking heads in the industry: Fox would make a lot more money if the results show was on Thursday.)bicker said:
So the main competition here, just like at 8:00 pm, is between reality shows. Dancing with the Stars had competition from America's Got Talent last year, but it didn't seem to hurt them. And The Biggest Loser is a different kind of reality show from the other two.
For us (mature) drama fans, there is only one choice: NCIS: Los Angeles. I still don't understand how Chris O'Donnell is supposed to still be alive, after the events of the back-door pilot broadcast in the spring. Regardless, given the similar production team, and given the cross-overs promised, it is practically assured that NCIS fans will like NCIS: Los Angeles.
CW follows their successful 90210 at 8:00 pm with another teen-oriented remake, Melrose Place.
We'll be recording and watching NCIS: Los Angeles.
Wow, this should be an interesting timeslot to watch: Three new shows up against each other. For those keeping track, this timeslot started last year with Eli Stone (gone), Without a Trace (gone), and L&O:SVU (moved to Wednesday 9:00 pm).bicker said:
I've described the new dramas above. It is really hard to know what's going to happen here. They're both decent shows on paper -- at least they were both decent shows on paper. Then they recast the two leads in The Forgotten, so that worries me. It is now led by Christian Slater, while The Good Wife is led by Julianna Margulies. And The Good Wife comes from Scott Free (the folks who make Numb3rs), so I think it really has a very firm foundation.
We'll record both, but watch The Good Wife before The Forgotten.
stacy347
I carried a watermelon?
- Joined
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I am looking forward to The Forgotten on Tuesdays now ~ I adore Christian Slater and was so disappointed when MOWE was cancelled. Honestly, I thought he may have been soured on the whole television experience but I am glad to see that was not the case and I really hope ABC gives this show a fair shot!
The only show I watch Tues at 10 right now is Chopped and we can catch that anytime so this one will get my full attention!
Also, I am very much wanting to watch the new NCIS spinoff (actors I like and the previews look very good) ~ but I have never watched NCIS so I don't know if I will feel out of the loop watching it.
The only show I watch Tues at 10 right now is Chopped and we can catch that anytime so this one will get my full attention!
Also, I am very much wanting to watch the new NCIS spinoff (actors I like and the previews look very good) ~ but I have never watched NCIS so I don't know if I will feel out of the loop watching it.
While House was not in this timeslot at the beginning of last fall, House was moved to Monday last winter. News is leaking from the producers that, after two years of fans complaining about the misuse of Chase and Cameron, they'll probably be returning to their previous roles in the show, this fall. I'd love to see that happen.bicker said:
Heroes is sharing this timeslot with last year's incumbent, Chuck, which takes over in March. I'm not sure about this slot-sharing arrangement. It does allow each of the two shows, Heroes and Chuck, to develop a more focused season. Fewer episodes means that writers don't have to try to fill more episodes than a limited set of ideas would permit. While that really makes a lot of sense for Heroes, it doesn't really help Chuck very much.
It will also be very interesting to see how Subway impresses its sponsorship on Chuck. This could be another bit of movement on the product placement; I wonder if we'll see Sarah working for Subway.
And finally, Accidentally On Purpose slips into the 8:30 pm slot, while How I Met Your Mother takes The Big Bang Theory slot, with The Big Bang Theory moving to 9:30 pm.
We'll be recording, and watching, House and Heroes. We'll also record How I Met Your Mother on our old SD DVR (until October 20 when our cable service may no longer work with our SD DVR) and/or the OTA tuner on my laptop (I have an HDMI port on my computer, which I can probably use to feed my HDTV, assuming we don't have occasion to just watch the show on the laptop, while traveling.
stacy347
I carried a watermelon?
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- 2,614
I'm hoping that will be the case even with all the crossovers. If I really like it, maybe I'll get NCIS through Netflix and give that a shot (I don't know why exactly that one never caught my interest before).
I also just watched the first three episode of Dark Blue on demand and thought it was really good! I'll be catching that one from now on.
I'm thinking this is going to be one of those timeslots that really shows what condition NBC is in. The 10:00 pm slot, with Jay Leno Monday through Friday, isn't going to be definitive: They can get 1/3 the ratings of other show and still win the timeslot from a business perspective (which is all that really matters). In most other timeslots, their dramas are either already hits, or already weak, or only up against comedies and reality shows. But here in this timslot we have a new drama, going up a teen drama (One Tree Hill) and a sophomore drama (Lie To Me) that is considered to be pretty weak -- so much so that a lot of us fans of the show were pretty surprised it was renewed. If Trauma cannot beat Lie To Me, then that really doesn't bode well for NBC's credibility as an outlet for dramas. (Not that they necessarily need to be, of course.) And quite frankly, I've seen two other series in the last four years that were along the same lines as Trauma, that excited me with their premise more than Trauma does.bicker said:
Regarding the CBS comedies: I am wondering what moving The Big Bang Theory to 9:30 pm means. Is that a vote of confidence? Or an expression of concern? Do they think it needs a stronger lead-in (Two and a Half Men)? or are they thinking that it will serve as a strong lead-in for CSI: Miami?
We'll be recording Lie To Me and Trauma, and watching Lie To Me.
I had to put the ION program in there... so at least one 10:00 pm timeslot had a chance of having a three-way conflict among dramas.bicker said:
Durham County actually does look like a decent show, but I think Durham County will be the kind of show you have to work to appreciate. (Note that I didn't say "enjoy" -- it doesn't seem like the kind of show you watch to "enjoy".)Castle take Boston Legal's old timeslot. I'm a bit shocked that this show, which my wife and I did enjoy somewhat last season, was actually renewed. It didn't really do that well, and I didn't really see much promise for it getting better, ratings-wise. Up against a CSI program, I cannot see it surviving very long.
We'll be recording Castle, and probably watching it, but it is currently our "returning show on the bubble", meaning that if one of the new shows that we're planning on recording and storing for later seems especially good, we'll start watching the new show and put Castle into storage.
Do I really need to comment on this timeslot? This is the very first timeslot I've discussed within which there is nothing that we're watching or even recording. (The only other timeslots where that is the case are on Saturday.)bicker said:
It isn't lost on me that two of the four network offerings during this timeslot are football. I can understand that the sport has fans, but two of four national networks? Seriously?
I shouldn't really complain. With Fox running "The OT" now, we hardly ever miss recording The Simpsons due to the afternoon football game running long. Home Videos? Still on? I would have thought that YouTube has obviated the need for this show. No?
And then there's 60 Minutes. I used to watch regularly. As my life has become more stressful, the last thing that I want to do is sit down and watch the news in depth for an hour. I wonder how many news programs, now, are seeing a reverse normal distribution of viewers: Lots of young idealists, and lots of retirees.
As I indicated above, we're not recording anything in this timeslot.
I'm not sure why, but I've had in the back of my head, every time I've read the title The Cleveland Show, that the show was already canceled. Not sure... maybe I'm psychic.bicker said:
This is another timeslot with two reality shows at the same time, though these are clearly two different kind of reality shows. We used to watch the Amazing Race, but stopped when that contestant that kept on abusing his girlfriend was on. :icon_beat: Apparently, they're still not filming it in HD. C'mon; enter the 21st century, eh? :flush:
And another year of The Simpsons. Some folks must be thinking, "Isn't it enough yet?" The answer is a resounding no. Last season, just when I could have been getting to the point where I was wondering whether perhaps it was time to move on... but then I heard, "Ho Hi!" Perhaps the funniest sequence in 20 years.
We'll be recording The Simpsons, which we'll fit in when we have a spare half-hour.
NBC continues with football, and Fox continues with comedies. So drama-wise, it is the veteran powerhouse Desperate Housewives against newcomer Three Rivers. Does anyone think Three Rivers has a chance? Well, stranger things have happened. ER came back from ratings-death. Must-See Thursday comedies on NBC was finally defeated. But I think Three Rivers has a pretty difficult task ahead of it.bicker said:
First, the show is starting late. Very late. What the heck is CBS presenting Sunday at 9:00 pm in September that prevents them from presenting this news show until a week before Fox starts preempting shows for baseball.
Answer: Reality show There Goes the Neighborhood, the Emmy Awards, and the extended premiere of The Amazing Race. Tough luck for Three Rivers.Alex O'Loughlin (the heartthrob from Moonlight) and Katherine Moennig (from The L Word) star, with Alfre Woodard (replacing Julia Ormond) thrown in for good measure. The subject matter (heart transplants) can go either way I think -- suitably tear-jerking, or too sappy. Time will tell. They do have one thing going for them: The show comes from Paramount, so CBS has a vested interest in having it succeed (while The Good Wife, for example, has Scott Free involved, so CBS doesn't have quite as much of a vested interest). [That's actually something that might be useful for idle interest at some point, separating the shows into those owned by the network showing them from those that aren't. I bet there is a pretty strong correlation between shows not owned by the network showing them and getting canceled too soon...]
We'll be recording the two dramas (of course). We'll definitely watch one of them, but quite frankly I'm not sure which. We'll surely watch the first few episodes of Desperate Housewives (since it starts earlier), but if it doesn't really grab us this year we may try out some of the new shows that we're planning on recording to watch later -- if we like one of them better then Desperate Housewives (perhaps Three Rivers), we'll switch to watching that new show and save Desperate Housewives for December or January ... or July.
First review I've seen of Flash Forward....
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/08/16/flash-forward-should-do-just-fine/24835
... very cool.
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/08/16/flash-forward-should-do-just-fine/24835
... very cool.
Folks looking for their first HDTV might want to look at today's Woot... it's not a great HDTV (especially since its a refurb) but it is a first step, and it is a decent price for what it is (but I would recommend an extended warranty).
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