"Playboy" Plays No More

Yesterday, The Playboy Club was the first new show of the 2011-2012 season to get the ax (one of the two new network Mad Men-lite shows).

The show's problem?  Not enough BUNNIES!!!

Not to say “I told you so” (and all other show issues aside) just thought I’d say "I told you so" and re-direct back to this post I did not too long ago about the perception of cable shows like Mad Men’s popularity vs. the reality of their low ratings (or at least, ratings that wouldn't fly on broadcast network TV).  Just like last season’s cable-esque Lone Star, Playboy couldn’t get enough viewers to stay afloat.  On the flip side, Pan Am, ABC’s Mad Men-lite show, has had better ratings so far (though that show suffered a big drop from week 1 to week 2…which is typical, but it does put them in the danger zone...I also imagine the show isn't cheap to make).

Overall, I’m not sure I totally have a point.  While it didn't really grab me, I thought Playboy was fairly enjoyable though it did have issues (like the target audience...men or women?) and even though it flopped, I suppose I'd rather see a network take a chance on a show like that than rehash a tired but more network friendly property like Charlie’s Angels (which by the way, hasn't fared much better in the ratings game).

But still, I don't want the demise of shows like Playboy to hurt the chances of other risk taking shows that might have more ratings appeal so all we have left are crime procedurals.  Nothing against crime procedurals, but I'd prefer that every show on TV not be a cop show.  And don't forget, not all crime procedurals succeed.  Prime Suspect, a crime procedural (and another new NBC show) is floundering big time...and that's despite a movie star in the lead role and good buzz from critics.

You must watch..."Awkward."

For someone who claims not to follow comedy, here comes another half hour show I’m pushing to the masses.

While MTV is more known lately for shows of the Jersey Shore variety, they do have original scripted programming, and I think they’ve really scored with Awkward.

I love this show!  I watched all of season 1 in 2 days (granted, each episode besides the finale is only a half hour long and there are only 10 of them).  But yeah, clearly I really enjoyed it!  The dialogue has a fast talking Gilmore Girlsy vibe…which I like, mixed with a wacky Diablo Codyish teen slang thing (think Juno…which I’m not quite as into).  Overall, I think too much of either of these things might be irritating, but the writing never feels forced or strained.  Likewise, the actors are really exceptional and always do a great job.

Major props to Ashley Rickards who plays the lead, Jenna.  This young woman is really a star.  She’s one part snarky Ellen Page/Juno and one part wise beyond her years Claire Danes/Angela Chase.   I expect to see her in tons of things beyond this show in the future.

From a writing standpoint, I think the most important thing a writer can take away from this show is to craft three dimensional characters.  This is key on every show, but especially one with familiar character constructs (the awkward teen girl, the bitchy popular cheerleader, the popular hot jock, etc.).  I think this show just goes to show that no matter how high or low concept your show idea may be, excellent writing can shine no matter what and admittedly, Awkward. isn't really covering any new ground and yet, it always feels fresh.

Speaking of the characters, one character that stands out in particular for me is the main antagonist, Sadie Saxton, the bitchy rich popular cheerleader.  On paper she sounds pretty generic, but Sadie isn’t just some cardboard mean girl you've seen a million times before.  Sadie has issues of her own...she struggles with her weight, her mother, she likes a guy who doesn’t reciprocate her advances.  Sadie is also very smart, conniving, and does some pretty bad stuff.  Sadie always keeps me on my toes...I never know whether a scene is going to show her being horrible, or flip the script and put her in a situation that actually makes me feel bad for her...she's really fun to watch.

Anyway, the show is like this with pretty much every character and when you get to see the good and bad in everyone, it's hard to get bored.  Plus, there’s the whole fast/wacky dialogue thing which if you’re into, makes the show even more fun.

Speaking of good and bad (or pros and cons) the show also has a solid love triangle that’s really well done.  I’ve mentioned the importance of love triangles on teen shows before.  This show has one and neither guy is clearly better than the other...both have their pros and cons, which is great, interesting, and really keeps you guessing.

In a word, Awkward. is awesome…and if you missed it over the summer (like me) you can catch up on MTV.com where full episodes for the whole season are currently available.

Emmys Wrap Up - Broadcast Networks Rising

Did you watch the Emmys last night?  Overall, I thought it was a pretty good show.  A little fashion, a few funny sketches, some awkward Charlie Sheen time, and Jane Lynch doing a nice job hosting and performing in some funny pre-recorded bits.  While the show played it pretty safe and by the book  (i.e. it ran on time and Ricky Gervais didn’t host) there were a few upsets/surprises that kept me interested till the end.

I was especially happy with all the top acting wins -- Jim Parsons and Melissa McCarthy who are personal favorites of mine, along with Julianna Margulies for The Good Wife (which I love), and Kyle Chandler for FNL (which I also love).  Also, very pleased with Peter Dinklage's win for Game of Thrones (which I predicted even before he was nominated…okay not a stretch if you'd seen the show).

I was also really thrilled that Jason Katims won the big writing award for FNL.  As an aspiring writer of TV drama, this is an award whose winners and nominees I really take note of (sometimes even more so than the best show nominees and winners) and considering I've loved the writing on FNL, and the fact that the show has been severely under appreciated (awards wise), and the fact that I really like Katims' other show, Parenthood, it’s so nice to see him get the recognition he deserves.  To me, that win was probably the best surprise of the night.

On that note, I think I was surprised all night by how much the cable networks seemed to falter compared to the amount of nominations they got.  I mean sure, HBO can’t win them all, but the broadcast networks really seemed to hold their own.  First, there was the big loss by nominations juggernaut Mildred Pierce.  While Kate Winslet still won for playing the title role (and looked lovely doing it) the show lost out to a PBS show.

On the comedy side, Modern Family clearly dominated, winning acting awards in both categories it was heavily nominated as well as winning for directing, writing, and the show itself.  As I mentioned before, the other acting awards in comedy both went to shows on CBS.  If you’re a comedy writer who really wants to write a cable style dramedy right now…I’d say, that's cool and maybe you're going to have the next big thing, but maybe also make sure you have a good network friendly comedy in your portfolio because that’s clearly what’s hot (both critically and ratings wise) right now.

On the drama side, broadcast network (and former network) shows also made strong showings, with my personal favorite FNL getting two big awards for acting and writing, and Julianna Margulies nabbing the well deserved best actress award.

Now, maybe these couple of wins don’t seem like a lot when you consider the supporting actor nods, directing, and best show all went to non-broadcast network shows, but when you also consider how many nominations a network like HBO or a show like Mad Men gets every year, I’d say the broadcast networks did a pretty darn good job not letting any one cable show run away with it (hey, even Matt Weiner seemed surprised Mad Men won...I was right there with him, I thought for a second that FNL was going to pull off the big upset and take it).

Overall, despite the Mad Men win, I still felt like the Academy's choices really made the point that a show doesn’t have to be on basic or even pay cable to have the best writing and the best leading roles for actors (two things I think a lot of viewers and critics have not felt the past few years).

I guess a win by Mad Men must still feel good for some networks (cough, ABC and NBC, cough) who doubled down on 1960s shows this upcoming season (Pan Am and Playboy Club).  I guess we'll see if the solid Emmy performance of broadcast network shows (and somewhat faltering Emmy performance of cable shows) affects the ongoing TV development season but...I'm just saying...I’d love to see every network go after the next FNL or Good Wife just as hard as they went after the next Mad Men.  Make it happen broadcast networks.  Make it happen.

EDIT: Just saw this article from Deadline which talks about broadcast networks great Emmy performance this year... check it out!

You must watch..."Louie"

If you read this blog at all, you know I love TV, but that I focus on drama more than comedy.  Nevertheless, I still likes me a good TV comedy and so I wanted to write this post plugging one of my latest addictions, Louis C.K.’s brilliant FX show, Louie.

Why is Louie such a great show?  Honestly, the reasons are kind of inexplicable (sort of like the show itself).  While Louie stars a stand up comedian playing a version of himself, just like Seinfeld, and usually opens with Louis C.K. doing his standup routine, the similarities between the two shows end there (not that there's anything wrong with Seinfeld).  Louie is far from a sitcom, in fact, the episodes are essentially 1 or 2 indie looking short films about all manner of things.  While comedic moments abound, some episodes are actually very dramatic.  In recent episodes, Louis dealt with a down and out friend from his early standup days, creepy NYC thugs scaring his daughters on Halloween, and a USO trip to Afghanistan (a truly amazing episode of TV).  Don't get me wrong though, when the show is being funny, I think it's absolutely hysterical.

This video's kinda not safe for work...or for babies.

Just as Curb Your Enthusiasm takes a viewer into Larry David’s insane and twisted world of faux pas and people (usually Larry) behaving badly, Louie takes its audience into the funny, cynical, and sometimes mundane world of Louis C.K.  It can be extremely funny one moment and bittersweet (even sad) the next.  It’s really not like any other half hour comedy on TV.

I’m not sure what big lessons a writer can take from it, except that like Curb, Louie has a strong voice and Louie's point of view/way he sees the world really shines through in every episode.  Besides the distinct voice, the show is also full of surprises and can be incredibly disarming, so I always keep watching to see what happens next.  I’ve read on the internets that some people hate this show because it's so unusual for a comedy or they don’t like the Woody Allenish short film format, but I say...give it a chance!  Let it grow on you!  I think this is one of those show that once you like it, you’ll really really like it.

Speaking of liking the show, Louie is nominated for 2 Emmys this year (for lead actor in a comedy and for writing).  The show airs Thursday nights on FX...there are only 2 new episodes left this season, but if you like what you see a few others are up on Hulu (and feel free to watch the episodes out of order, with the format the way it is, continuity isn't really an issue).

Perception vs Reality...cable shows on network TV

I read an interesting blog post this week about perception vs. reality.  Go ahead, read it!  It tells the story of a store owner being asked what their best selling item is and the store owner guessing incorrectly based on a couple recent sales.  In reality, their bestseller was a totally different item and if they’d filled their stock room with the wrong item, they would have paid the price…literally…they would have over bought the wrong item.

This reminded me of a conversation I was having the other day with some fellow baby and aspiring writers about networks wanting cable shows/buying up scripts for cable-like pilots.  While I know many people are excited about this trend, I think it is fueling its own perception vs. reality problem.  The perception is that cable shows are extremely popular.  I mean…aren’t they?  All your friends do is talk about Mad Men and have Mad Men parties and change their Facebook profile pics to their Mad Men-ify yourself equivalents.  And Mad Men wins all the awards every year.  So, Mad Men is super hot…right?

Wait...what was that question, again?

Reality check.

These are the ratings for the 2010-2011 season.

So…write the next American Idol and you’re all set!  Kidding.  The point is that among scripted shows, the most popular in terms of total viewers were show like NCIS, NCIS: LA, The Mentalist, Criminal Minds, and CSI.  In other words, crime procedurals. And what about cable shows? Well, take a look at what was on top this past week.

This link changes every week but on top are gonna be reality shows like Jersey Shore and Pawn Stars, sports if it's sports season, and...more procedurals like The Closer, Rizzoli & Isles, Burn Notice and reruns of NCIS.  Also, the scripted shows aren’t nearly as watched as the network procedurals (they tend to top out around 6 million viewers).

And…once again, back to the ubiquitous Mad Men.  Their most watched episode of the past season had 2.47 million viewers, and their highest rating ever was their season 3 premier back in 2009 which was 2.76 million viewers (numbers courtesy of the sometimes inaccurate Wikipedia).  Does this mean Mad Men isn’t popular?  No way.  It's certainly popular enough for AMC, though it's not their most watched show (that would be The Walking Dead).  And hey, don’t underestimate the power of network advertising.  Not everyone has basic cable, and maybe if Mad Men was on Fox, way more people would watch.  Also, plenty of shows succeed with limited appeal.  Heck, the CW dedicates itself to shows that only cater to a very specific demographic, like Gossip Girl, and that show often has fewer viewers than Mad Men...but I digress…

My point is, I guess I think there is currently a false perception that cable/cable-like shows are really popular/hot (not just critically) and that false perception might manifest itself next season.  A few networks seem to be going for shows that are more cable...and even a couple Mad Men-like period shows (Pan Am and The Playboy Club).  But, remember Lone Star last season?  I believe I read an article where Kyle Killen said Fox wanted a “cable show” for network and that’s where Lone Star came in…and well…Lone Star was critically acclaimed but only brought in around 3-4 million viewers in their first 2 episodes.  Those would be record breaking numbers for Mad Men, but clearly, no good for Fox.

Anyway, I’m not saying it’s dumb to write cable-y shows (I’m writing one myself) or that I don't want to see more shows like Mad Men and maybe a few less procedurals…just that maybe there’s gonna be a backlash if a lot of these cable-y shows for networks don’t draw big enough audiences to stick around next season.

You must watch..."Switched at Birth"

Sooo...I’ve been enjoying the new ABC Family summer drama Switched at Birth.  Like…really enjoying.  This is a concept that could have gone SO wrong and SO bad/cheesy.  But honestly, when the show is at its best it reminds me of Gilmore Girls (an old favorite of mine).  Especially Bay, one of the main characters (the actress actually WAS on Gilmore Girls).  She is full of witty little one liners/references like “You’re not a plot twist in a Mark Twain novel.”  Ah, so Gilmore Girls…it’s not for everyone, but I think it’s funny and I love it.

On that note, I think one of the best things the show does is use humor heavily.  Let’s face it, the show is dealing with some heavy issues – having your child switched at birth, your child going deaf, alcohol/gambling addictions, and (of course) typical teen/dating/sex stuff.  Without humor to even out all these things, I would probably be gagging every other scene.  Instead, this show legitimately makes me laugh out loud (and yes, get a little misty eyed at some points).  Something to remember if you’re writing your own family drama with some serious stuff in it…don’t skimp on the humor!

I also think, the show avoids the melodrama by pulling back and trying to show instead of tell or skipping conversations that would likely be long winded and overly dramatic.  Sure, there are still some big emotional scenes and monologues, but not every scene is like that which is such a relief.  I think the fact that many of the characters are signing while talking (or sometimes only signing) helps to add a little distance between the characters and the drama.  If one character only signs and the other doesn’t understand the signs, that buries the super serious moments a little by adding another layer to the scene.  Instead of just: two characters fight, the scene might be...two characters try to fight, but they can’t completely understand each other.  This definitely makes for more interesting viewing.

Another thing I love is the way teens are portrayed.  This is a show where teens are intelligent…in a realistic way.  Sure, they sometimes fight/care about dumb high school issues/boyfriends/petty things, but they’re smart, they do homework, they like art and music and have well thought out things to say.  It’s just so nice and refreshing to see a show that focuses on a couple high school girls that isn’t all catty fights and dumb boy problems.

I think a lot of the credit goes to the writers and especially to Vanessa Marano who plays Bay and Katie Leclerc who plays Daphne.  All I can say is…WOW, these ladies are both outstanding…seriously, two stars in the making.

I think my only criticism of the show would be that the glossy ABC Family look kinda negates the economic clash that’s supposed to be going on.  It’s hard to see one family as poor and the other as incredibly rich when everyone dresses nicely and even the “bad” neighborhood doesn’t look so “bad.”  Also, I don’t think I’ve seen any show that really nails teasing/bullying by teens in a totally believable way that doesn’t make me roll my eyes/doesn’t feel super on the nose.  But, whatevs, I can tell the show tries hard to make the point but also pull back a little.

Overall, Switched at Birth is really doing something right, and I’d love to see more family dramas written like it on TV.  You can catch the latest episode tonight (Monday) on ABC Family, or catch up on Hulu.

2011 Emmy Noms: The Good, The Bad, and The Snubly

Primetime Emmy noms came out this morning!  Huzzah!  While I know some people just roll their eyes at awards shows and insist they are a joke/all fixed/just another chance for Hollywood peeps to pretend they’re more important than they are, I think the Emmys are a pretty solid way to judge what new shows are hot and what old shows still attract attention.  This can be useful information when say, deciding to write your next spec (hmmm maybe a Justified?) or when deciding to write a pilot (the fact that Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire are both nominated for best drama makes me feel solid about tackling a “period piece” for my next pilot).

She's got the whole world, in her hands!

So, how did the Emmys do?  I present (in my opinion…and probably my opinion only): The Good, The Bad, and The Snubly:

THE GOOD

Overall, I thought most of the nominations looked pretty good…much more to like than not to like.

Best Drama - So excited to see three shows I’ve pushed and profiled on this blog get three of the six drama nomination spots: Friday Night Lights, The Good Wife, and Game of Thrones.  All the shows are awesome (or were awesome…as FNL is now finito).  Not that these shows are huge surprise noms, but I'm still glad.

FNL - FNL’s writing and acting nominations are much deserved as well...Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, and Jason Katims…I heart you all for this show.

Michael J. Fox – Heck yeah!  Michael J. Fox always knocks it out of the park when he’s on The Good Wife…well deserved guest actor nomination.

Peter Dinklage - Not surprised at all to see Peter Dinklage nominated for GOT, as I said earlier this week, I think he is awesome and will/should win.

Mireille Enos – I haven’t watch The Killing (it looks scary!) but Mireille Enos was one of my favorite actors on Big Love…so happy to see her having so much success.

Melissa McCarthy - I’m not a huge comedy nut, and I don’t even watch Mike & Molly (though I’ve read the pilot and thought it was a solid and funny sitcom) but Melissa McCarthy’s nomination makes me happy.  I think she’s a star and she’s hilarious (she steals every scene she’s in, in Bridesmaids).

Jim Parsons – I know TBBT isn’t for everyone and some people find it tired, but I freakin’ love Jim Parsons, so there.

Louis C.K. - Happy for the Louie related noms…every ep of the show that I've seen has cracked me up.

Matt LeBlanc - I haven't seen any of this show because I don't have Showtime, but as a huge fan of Friends from back in the day, I'm happy to see Matt move past Joey.

No Walking Dead - I don't have a grudge against this show, I swear (hey, I watched the whole first season) but as I wrote earlier this year, I thought the show was lacking in some areas.

South Park – Not that Trey Parker and Matt Stone need more awards considering the success of Book of Mormon, but I thought "Crack Baby Athletic Association" was one of the best episodes of TV I’ve watched in the past year…period...and I’m admittedly not a big comedy show watcher.  Glad to see them get nominated for this episode, hope they win.

THE BAD

Mariska – Ah, the obligatory Mariska Hargitay nomination…seems a bit silly at this point, no?  No issue with Ms. Hargitay’s acting and all, but on a procedural the plot is always gonna take center stage, not the characters (or actors playing them).  Ms. Hargitay might be a star and a great actress, but I think her Emmy nomination usually comes at the expense of snubbing another worthy actress.  Also, if you’re gonna nominate her, what about Christopher Meloni (who is btw an AMAZING actor, both comedy and drama).

Modern Family Cast - I’ve only seen a few episodes of Modern Family and I like it, I really do, but seriously, EVERY SINGLE principle cast member nominated for an Emmy?  Maybe if I was a hardcore fan I’d feel differently.

Glee – I watch Glee every week and I really enjoy it, I do, but I felt Glee was pretty mediocre at times this season and not all that funny when it was at its best.   I dunno, best comedy seems a bit much.   I’m down with acting nominations for the talented cast and guest actors, but the show as a whole was lacking in some ways this season or the plots just came out of nowhere/went nowhere at times.

Jon Cryer – I love you Duckie, but I feel like this nomination has a heck of a lot more to do with snubbing Charlie Sheen than the quality of Two and a Half Men as of late.

THE SNUBLY

Justified - I don’t watch Justified, but all my friends tell me it’s the best darn show on TV.  The show got several acting nominations but was itself not nominated for best drama in favor of longer running favorites like Dexter and Mad Men.  Snubbed or not snubbed?

Breaking Bad - Where was Breaking Bad in the nominations?  This is the other “best show on TV” that I’m embarrassed to say I’ve only watched a few episodes of.  Is the lack of nominations due to some schedule thing…like the show not airing a season during the nominations period?  EDIT: Took 5 seconds to look this up because it was bugging me and yeah, duh, the show has been on a hiatus...guess if I watched it more than once a year I would have known.

Parenthood - No nominations for Parenthood.  I know some people find the show hard to connect with because it’s a serial without an obvious and clear driving goal (similar to my issue with The Walking Dead).  Unlike Walking Dead, however, I always feel like I can relate to the sometimes mundane sometimes more serious family issues on the show…and yeah I like it a lot, especially the performances of Peter Krause, Dax Shephard (who is very surprising), and the wonderful Max Burkholder.  Plus Lauren Graham…always good.  Maybe like FNL, this show will pick up awards steam in time (if it continues to stick around).

Community and Raising Hope - Even though I’m admittedly not a huge comedy person, I’ve seen several eps of both of these shows and thought they were both great and very very funny.  I think either probably deserves that Glee spot in the best comedy category.


And that's that...we'll see who wins, who cries, and who dresses like a hot mess when the show airs on 9/18.  I'll also, no doubt, be rooting for some of my reality favorites that night like...Top Chef, SYTYCD (Cat Deeley!), and yeah...Idol...I guess...is it possible to simultaneously love and hate a show you watch every episode of?

You must watch..."Game of Thrones"

Hello all.  Wish I could say I’ve been busy doing something new and awesome and that’s the reason I haven’t been posting, but the real reason is just the usual stuff.  I’ve been plugging away on my writing and using the wasteland of summer TV repeats time to catch up on everything I missed the rest of the year…and well, I just finished watching the best new show I’ve seen in…a long time.

I prefer a less "pokey" chair myself.

If you don’t have HBO or if you do have HBO and you’ve just been living under a rock (like I was) you might have missed Game of Thrones when it originally aired this spring.  Not to fear, if you have HBO it’s still on, “on demand” for just under a week (till the 18th).  This might not seem like much time but trust me, if you like the show, you will finish all 10 episodes very quickly.  Also, I'm sure there will be cool legal ways for non HBOers to watch it soon/when it becomes available on DVD (like Netflix).

So, what makes Game of Thrones so great?  Is it all the naked ladies (and men), the occasional fighting/bloody violence, the excellent production values, or simply the Lord of the Ringsness of it all?  To tell the truth, I’m not a huge fan of fantasy or worlds where vaguely medieval knights gallop around on horses and live in realms where there are dungeons and dragons and those sorts of things.  I appreciate the detail in the world building, but I tend to be drawn more to family dramas and shows about the world I live in, even if they’re still totally unrealistic (like Desperate Housewives) or way outside the scope of my ordinary life (like The Good Wife).  I just feel like I can relate more to the familiar character dynamics of those types of shows (modern day parent/child, sibling, and couple relationships) which helps me in turn care about the shows' characters and their stories.  To me, fantasy or stories that happen in pseudo fantasy worlds are more about that world and therefore usually feel a little alienating to me, even if the worlds are cool.

But that’s the beauty of Game of Thrones.  The shows gets to have it both ways.  Even though the show definitely has a fantasylike world, at its core, this show is a family drama (or several family dramas as it were) and the show's focus on family relationships is just one reason I got hooked.

Another big reason has to do with the complexity of characters.  Fantasy to me usually means pretty clear GOOD and EVIL characters/creatures/giant burning eyes.  Game of Thrones is a lot more ambiguous.  Characters will surprise you, or you will find yourself loving them one moment and being angry at them for the way they act the next.  You might also find yourself rooting for two separate families or characters whose goals you know will ultimately be at odds with one another.  This complexity is great and with stakes so high (life and death) the show is exciting to watch and will hook you and keep you guessing where the story is going to go.

The show, based on a series of popular books (the newest of which is being released today, I guess) also does some craaaaazy stuff that I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show do before in season one (no spoilers here, you’ll just have to watch to see what I mean, and if you have watched, then you already know).  Also, keep your eye on the oh so talented Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister.  Seriously, he steals every scene he's in and yeah, I’ll call it right now…Emmy nominations are announced later this week (7/14) and I think Dinklage will not only get a nom, but will win this year.

So yeah, even if you’re like me and fantasy isn’t your cup of tea, put that aside and watch Game of Thrones already.  It’s just that good.

Testing...testing...

If you can’t already tell from my various Pilot Previews, or my obsession with upfronts…I’m excited for the upcoming TV season.

Deadline just released an article yesterday on the early pilot buzz (what’s testing well and what’s not).

Testing is a funny thing though.  I heard Bill Lawrence (creator of Scrubs and now Cougar Town) speak once about how poorly Scrubs had initially tested.  While the show didn’t test poorly enough to get axed from the get go, he implied that the audience thought the show was strange (probably because it was a little strange).  The show was a single camera comedy before single cam became the norm for every network besides CBS and it had characters narrating, breaking the 4th wall, and having all sorts of unusual out of body fantasy like experiences.  People hadn’t really seen a show like this before, so they reacted…negatively.

On the other hand, he said one show that tested incredibly well around the same time for NBC was Emeril…you know, that sitcom about the chef Emeril Lagasse.  Emeril was a straightforward sitcom with a well known celebrity chef/star...it was what you might call "safe," and apparently when it tested, people really liked it.  But why?  Well, I guess when you're turning those little dial thingies that measure your positive to negative response, what is weird and unknown equals negative and what is comfortable and known equals positive.  Oh, and you might doubt Emeril actually tested well, but I did find some proof.

In the end, Emeril was highly promoted by NBC but it died a quick death.  Meanwhile, Scrubs got tossed around a lot, changed time slots and even networks, but it lasted 9 years and arguably made Zach Braff a star.

So, check out what’s testing well, but take it with a grain of salt.  Testing well might equal “has a good chance of getting picked up” but it doesn’t necessarily equal “the show will be good” or “successful.”

When are this year's TV upfronts?

Today, a simple question...but first, what are “upfronts?”

If you follow TV at all, you've probably heard the term/already know what they are, but “upfronts” are the meetings/shows put on by each network for advertisers/press/anyone like me who is interested from a far, where they officially announce their show line up for the next season.  Upfronts are important since ad sales = $$$ for the network so networks often try to put on a big show at upfronts to convince advertisers how cool their current and new shows are…and hopefully, all those advertisers will agree to buy lots of time.  You’ve probably heard of upfronts bringing out the stars of their shows to do funny skits/videos or perform for the crowd (I think a trip to the Fox upfront pretty much guarantees a concert by the Glee kids and probably some other song/dance action from their reality hits).

When will we know what we'll be watching next year?

At any rate, average people like me want to know when upfronts are because we’re waiting to hear if a show we liked that’s on the bubble is gonna be renewed/what new pilots are gonna get picked up/what shows we are gonna try to get a job on next year.

Check out the following link for a fairly up to date calendar of the upfront events (less than a month away for most of the big networks).

Also, check out the following link for info on the ever changing status of current shows…many have already been cancelled while some have recently been picked up.