All right, so we've done the big boys, time for little brother. The CW is the bastard child of TV. It has however managed to be slowly claw it's way into quite a bit of viewership in the last few years, especially with the ever sought after younger viewer. With shows like Gossip Girl, which is really just a younger skin on Sex in the City, and Vampire Diaries, aka the TV version of Twilight, drawing the the teen, tween, and young adult audiences. This year is no different. The network is, again, skewing young with most of its offerings including several reality shows. I'm just going to stick with scripted offerings however.
After the success of Vampire Diaries it should be no surprise that another teen supernatural drama would be on the way. I really found the little bit of what I watched of Vampire Diaries pretty fun and entertaining and I can see the same in The Secret Circle. Just another take on the high school drama with a supernatural twist. Think The Craft meets Buffy. I think I am going to give this one a shot.
Here's the is a show that is top five on my list for this year easily. Sarah Michelle Gellars (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) return to TV comes in the form of Ringer, a suspense thriller that has caught some eyes so far. I think the dark tone and twin storyline look great and I for one am very excited about this one.
And finally, Doc Hollywood was a horrible movie. So why not make one for TV? Who the hell thinks of this shit?
So overall I think that the CW is staying the course which is probably best for the fledgling network. I think two of the three shows will end up showing well for them and that's a pretty good showing. As always you can leave feedback in the comments or hit me up on twitter, @Jlove89. Also feel free to click the assorted social media thingys below to help spread the word. Thanks!
So back to TV. This time it's my favorite (please read with heavy sarcasm) network, FOX. Yep, I really think that FOX has been short sighted in the past with shows that could have had legs if given the time to pick up an audience. But I have bitched about that in great detail before so this will not be a look back but rather a look forward to what FOX with be offering us this fall.
First up is what I consider one of the most misguided moves in TV this year. Tera Nova is show about a group of people who, in the year 2149 when the earth is dying, travel back in time to the cretaceous era. Yep, complete with dinosaurs. Take a minute and think that one through. Now, Steven Spielberg is one of the producers behind this one so FOX might give it a chance. But this really looks a lot like am attempt to cash in on Avatars success at the box office and judging by the trailer, a poor one at that.
Now on to the next attempt by FOX to put a spin on the procedural. They have successfully done it with Bones and Fringe in the past and I am keeping an open mind about The Finder. This one to me is Bones and Justified kinda smashed together. It wont be starting until mid-season and will be falling into the Bones slot so it should get a small bump to start. In fact this is a Bones spin-off. and the “pilot” was shown as one of the Bones episodes last season. I want to like this show, but I was not impressed by the one off episode that was shown. This one has me on the fence. I think that once the cast gets the opportunity to separate itself from Bones and gel as a cast that this one might show well. The only question is, will FOX give them that kind of time?
Did you love Napoleon Dynamite? If the answer is no (this is where I fall), move on this isn't for you. If the answer is yes, step right up have I got something for you. Your favorite fuzzy-headed dancing freak is back! FOX is bring an animated series based on the fill to its Sunday night Animation Domination line-up. Here's the the bonus, all the characters will be played by the actors that played them in the film.
Do you love Jonah Hill? Yep, same deal as above. Animated series created by Jonah Hill, also voiced by Jonah Hill, about a very mature little kid being forced away from home schooling and into public school. Yeah, that all I've got so here is Allen Gregory, Enjoy?
Okay, one more comedy from FOX. This one I really want to like, mostly because I have become rather fond of the quirkiness that Zooey Deschanel typically brings to a character. However, this one just seems to be rubbing me the wrong way. I hope it gets better, but I'm not holding my breath.
Alright, how about something that might not suck now? Who ,may you ask, can save us? Why JJ Abrams of course, for he knows the hearts of all TV watchers. Or at least you would think so by the speed at which any project with him attached is given a green light. I know that all sounds cynical, but this show is the one new FOX show that has the potential of being a huge hit. I ,for one, can't wait to see where Alcatraz takes us when it hits mid-season.
An now, for moment you've all been waiting for, I Hate My Teenage Daughter. Long title for a show that I think will have a really short run. I think this misses both the demographics it is shooting for in mothers and daughters. Although the cast boasts two great comedic actresses in Jaime Pressly (My Name is Earl) and Kate Finneran (Wonderfalls) it just seems to be trying to hard. But I am also the guy that said the same thing about Two and a Half Men. I just don't see this being able to capture any real numbers, it is too busy trying to get maximum viewership to be all that funny. But what do I know?
Of course we all know that FOX cares very little about most of these shows success. They are going all in on very big variable. The X Factor will be the show that FOX anchors it's line up around this fall. If the show can get fraction of the viewers that American Idol gets it will be a huge win for FOX. Especially since it can drag it out over two full primetime hours just like Idol. As long as FOX has a show that can do that they can afford to ax shows after only a few episodes. The thing is they aren't really reaching this year. In the past they have stuck their neck out on shows like Glee and Lie to Me. Some didn't pan out while others a have become network staples. Why not take some more risks. With the huge popularity of your reality shows, what's the risk? I guess I am just not really impressed with what FOX has to offer after choosing to cancel shows like Lie to Me and The Chicago Code. What do you think? Let me know in the comments below, or on twitter @Jlove89.
Alright, so I'm back. I took last week off since it was E3 week and I wanted to just soak it all up before I wrote about it. So this post will be about some of the new things and upcoming games I found most exciting from E3. I will break it up into the big three (Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo) this time and I will follow up in a couple days with the games that really stood out to me.
Let start with the company, that in my, opinion “won” E3. Sony. Yep, you heard me. Sony had the best showing. They came out at their press event and showed some of the best of what the company offers to gamers. Uncharted 3 looks better than Uncharted 2 and that game was pretty much everyones number one game of 2009. The Resistance franchise looks to be back on track after a not so hot second installment. Of course there were some games missing as well. The Last Guardian was nowhere, not even at the show. No Metal Gear, huh? So what, you might ask, made Sony the winner in my eyes? One number...$249. The once codenamed NGP handheld from Sony was given it's official coming out party. Although they should have stuck with NGP or PSP or really anything other than PS Vita, which could be the worst console name....well...ever. They did get the price right. At $249 it is the same price as the 3DS and anyone that looks at, or even reads about, the differences between the two will be hard pressed to choose Nintendos offering over the Vita. The Vita boast graphics very close to the PS3, an OLED multitouch screen, a back touchpad, and ...wait for it...Dual analog sticks. In short, it is at least twice the machine the 3DS is for the same price. In fact with that announcement coming before Nintendos conference it put a whole different spin on the Nintendo event.
This was supposed to be Nintendos year. They were not only going to show what amazing games were coming for the 3DS, they were also showing off their brand new console that would once again change the face of gaming. Just one problem, they didn't follow through on any of it. I bought a 3DS, I had faith that Nintendo would come through with amazing content for device. And they did, by their standards. Only problem was that Sony had, less than 24 hours earlier, raised the bar so high with the Vita that Nintendo had no chance to impress anyone. So when Nintendo rolled out Mario Kart, Super Mario, Kid Icarus, Luigis Mansion 2 and Starfox it was great, but there was a voice in the back of my head that kept saying “none of this is as cool as the games on Vita”. So, that was kind of depressing.
Then there was the big announcement of the new console. The Wii-U, I have no idea who is naming these consoles but they should be fired. If you haven't seen the new controller let me try to describe it. It is what you would get if an iPad and a xbox controller had some kind of bastard child. Oh and you are still going to be using all the the stuff you collected with your Wii too. All the Wiimotes and nunchucks and balance boards all work with the new system. I think it best if you don't know to just watch the video. So, really not the homerun I was looing for from Nintendo either.
So now to Microsoft. Well it is obvious that Kinect is here to stay as it was a huge part of the Microsoft press event. And as has been the case the last two years as well a large part of show was also dedicated to non-game additions to the Xbox 360. This fall “The New Xbox Experience” (yeah they are using the exact same terminology again) will launch and will include a live TV channel, Bing, and MMA. First the TV thing, from different stories I've read it looks like Microsoft was planning a big unveil of the service at the show. However, they couldn't get the deals in place to actually announce any partners. My guess is we will hear a lot more about this in the coming months as more actual partners are signed. But from what they showed it looks to be the long talked about IPTV service for Xbox and will include almost all the bells and whistles you get from your provider now. It may not have all the channels right away, but it may grow into something that could replace your cable or satellite service. The addition of Bing essentially gives you a media search function for your xbox. The example they showed was Xmen. The person simply said “Xbox, Bing, Xmen” and a list of all the Games, demos, Videos (both in Zune and Netflix came up. Making it easy to find whatever it is your looking for. And finally, there will be MMA live matches on Xbox live. If this is the kind of thing you care about I'm sure you can find more info somewhere. All I know is that you can watch guys fight and root for them like you can on the current ESPN service as well as follow stats.
It looks as though Microsoft has ripped a page out of Sonys playbook. They are now trying to push Kinect on the hardcore by finding a way to “enhance” the core game we all play with Kinect. In other words they aren't going to force you to play Kinect, but if they make it look cool enough hopefully you will. The big way they showed this off was with Mass Effect 3. You can now read dialog prompts in case using the stick on the controller is too diffacult for you to figure out. The one that caught my eye though was being able to call out orders to your team in battle. I always hate pausing action to give orders, it takes me out of the action, this will hopefully give me control with out the loosing the illusion of being in the thick of it. Of course then there were the obvious Kinect software annoucements Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports Season 2, and Star Wars Kinect all looked like like great uses for the device.
And now the big stuff, Halo Anniversary was officially announced. If you don't know, what they have done it essentially reskinned Halo: Combat Evolved with graphic quality close to that of Reach. The really cool part is that the original game is running under the new polish so it not only plays identically but you can turn off the shiny new layer at any time and take a look at the difference. The really, really, cool part is that they are re-imagining the classic multiplayer maps for CE for use with Reaches multiplayer. Team slayer on Blood gulch anyone? And now the grand finale Halo 4 was also announced, however we wont see it until holiday 2012. Although that sounded great overall what they showed was a bunch of stuff we already knew about so all and all not that exciting as far as games go.
There you are, my thoughts on the big three. They are a bit disorganised, but I am still unsure of a clear message from anyone and its been more than a week.What do you think? Was E3 all you hoped for? What was your surprise of the show?
Alright, it's CBS's turn this week. Just to let you know up front. This is a pretty short list. It should be since CBS seems to have struck gold at least once a year for the last four years. Over the last four years they have added Big Bang Theory, The Mentalist, Hawaii Five-O, The Good Wife, and popular spin off NCIS: Los Angeles. Those shows bolstered a line up that already included perennial favorites Criminal Minds, How I Met Your Mother, Survivor, NCIS, Two and a Half Men and CSI among others. This network is in a state of “if it ain't broke, don't fix it”. So their offerings for this year include some safe plays with one standout in my mind, with out many open slots in their lineup it's a smart play.
First up is the one that got my attention. Unforgettable is a new spin on the buddy cop procedural that has become popular as of late with shows like Bones and Castle. The spin on this one seems to be the distinct lack of any comedy. While the others tend to use an almost Laurel and Hardy juxtaposition for laughs, Unforgettable is all about the serious. The main idea is that the leads here were once police partners and lovers who have been thrown back together by chance. There will, I'm sure, be plenty of emotional angst between the two as they not only work on cases but also their relationship. Sounds really melodramatic and kinda derivative doesn't it. Well here's the part that got me to put this on the top of my list for CBS, the female lead character has hyperthymesia which means she can't forget anything, ever. Watch the trailer and let me know what you think.
Next up is what I am hoping might be a new show in my sitcom rotation, but I'm not putting too much behind it. 2 Broke Girls (see how they used the number 2 to set it apart from Two and a Half Men, clever right?) is exactly what it sounds like, a sitcom about two girls who are broke trying to make it in the big city. One is a snarky and quick witted waitress while the other the daughter to a now indicted rich father and hence broke. This fish out of water meets the odd couple sitcom would be an automatic pass for me if it weren't for Kat Dennings who takes quick wit to all new lever. If the writing can stay somewhat smart and relevant, this might be a gem, despite the laugh track. I really think this trailer does the show no favors. How about you?
This next one just missed with me, for now. Person of Interest, a slightly new and realistic spin on the superhero story line starring Jim Caviezel as an ex-CIA agent sounds like a hit. But something just misses the mark for me here. I think the lack of any kind of story arc might be it. I hope that the trailer is just not showing what I need to get into this one. I really want to like it. Oh yeah, guess what, JJ Abrahms again. Picking up on theme?
Ladies, this one is for you. Or at least CBS thinks so. Take Greys Anatomy, throw in some Ghost Whisperer, and you get.... A Gifted Man. That's all I got, just watch the trailer.
And so we come to my last and definitely least of the CBS offerings. When the “funniest”(I use that term VERY loosely) parts of your trailer come from the sister and brother-in-law of you main character, you may want to think about starting over from scratch. I give you, How to be a Gentleman.
In closing, I think this may be the end of the road for the hits for CBS unless Unforgettable turns out to be just that.
