New TV Shows/Seasons - 2007

[Ksyrup]

I needed to remind myself of a couple of shows that are starting soon and thought a thread here might do the trick. Of particular interest to me:

Til Death Do Us Part - a Court TV show hosted by John Waters about real-life marriages that end in death. I already love Notorious, so this is right up my alley. And even better, Waters will lend a bit of humor to it.

Premieres tonight with two episodes at 10pm (30 minutes each).

Deadliest Catch - new season documenting several king crab fishing boats off the coast of Alaska (Bering Sea, I believe).

Premieres April 3rd on Discovery Channel.

Feel free to add season premieres here.

[Lathum]

Deadliest Catch - new season documenting several king crab fishing boats off the coast of Alaska (Bering Sea, I believe).

Premieres April 3rd on Discovery Channel.

Feel free to add season premieres here.


good to know, I saw they have been replaying past seasons.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, Deadliest Catch has been on my list for a month or so, but I keep forgetting until we see a commercial for it during Dirty Jobs every week or so.

I remember several people raving about it around here, but I had never seen it until I caught a marathon of Season 2 last June while vegging out after a marathon Bar study session one Sunday afternoon/night. Now I'm hooked.

[adubroff]

I needed to remind myself of a couple of shows that are starting soon and thought a thread here might do the trick. Of particular interest to me:

Til Death Do Us Part - a Court TV show hosted by John Waters about real-life marriages that end in death. I already love Notorious, so this is right up my alley. And even better, Waters will lend a bit of humor to it.

Premieres tonight with two episodes at 10pm (30 minutes each).



I am giving this one a shot. I saw him on Daily Show and Til Death Do Us Part looks like a winner. I am actually having a DVR dillemma because it's against the Riches and Black Donelly's. Has anybody watched the Riches to give me a thumbs up/down?

[Ksyrup]

I'm watching Til Death right now and it's not quite what I thought it was. I thought it was a profile of real-life marriages, but it's basically the Twilight Zone version of marriage-turned-murder. It's OK, but not great. Waters is probably the best part of the show, unfortunately.

[adubroff]

I'm watching Til Death right now and it's not quite what I thought it was. I thought it was a profile of real-life marriages, but it's basically the Twilight Zone version of marriage-turned-murder. It's OK, but not great. Waters is probably the best part of the show, unfortunately.


It's definitely smarmy/cheesy. It reminds me a little of Fact or Fiction for some reason.

[Ksyrup]

The plots and jokes are pretty predictable. The part where the lawyer is driving and talking to the client/husband about his divorce, I knew the chick was in his lap. That's about where I turned it off. I thought the show was more fact-based with Waters providing the commentary about how the marriage went from good to bad. I'll just stick with Notorious.

[stevew]

I love deadliest catch.

[sachmo71]

Jury is still out on The Riches. Minnie Driver is doing a great job, but Eddie Izzard seems to be having a hard time with an American accent. Funny at times, but the pace seems off...usually when Eddie is on the screen.

[bosshogg23]

Showtime has a new series starting, The Tudors, based on Henry VIII. I believe it starts on April 1st. Anyone who has Showtime can watch the first two episodes with On Demand. Sho.com also has posted both episodes that can be watched for free.

I watched both episodes last night and enjoyed it quite a bit. The show is engaging from the beginning. Other than some casting issues(Katherine of Aragon appears about 20 years older than Henry VIII) the show looks like it will be well worth watching.

[bosshogg23]

The Tudors has been picked up for a second 10 episode season.

[Ksyrup]

I love deadliest catch.

It has been great so far. I suspect the young captain who has been shown mooching off everyone else for spots to fish, an who has done so well so far, is probably goingto get a ton of crap and probably not as much help next season.

[Ksyrup]

Last night's episode of Deadliest Catch was great. And it didn't take long for the young cocky captain to get some shit - forget about next season! That guy reminds me of a better looking, fitter Jack Black. He could be a Jack Black character. Anyway, he's been worth watching the show by himself so far. That was funny as hell.

[MikeVic]

I'm watching Drive for now. Have to give some faith to Nathan Fillion and Tim Minear, but it hasn't really grabbed me by the balls yet.

[DanGarion]

I'm watching Drive for now. Have to give some faith to Nathan Fillion and Tim Minear, but it hasn't really grabbed me by the balls yet.

It's interesting enough to keep me entertained. But it's not cutting edge great stuff.

[Ksyrup]

I'm just glad that damn show premiered already, so I don't have to watch the zillion commercials for it.

[Ksyrup]

Drive was canceled after 2 episodes.

Let's see...that was 750 promos during AI, and 2 hours of actual programming.

[MikeVic]

Drive was canceled after 2 episodes.

Let's see...that was 750 promos during AI, and 2 hours of actual programming.

Hahaha. Really? I haven't seen the most recent episode yet. Guess I should just skip it.

[Thomkal]

I say Boo to Fox for not giving it more a chance. I was really getting into the mystery behind the sponsors of the race and some of the characters storylines.

You would think with all the promos they did Fox would have given it more of a chance.

[DanGarion]

Drive was canceled after 2 episodes.

Let's see...that was 750 promos during AI, and 2 hours of actual programming.

Technically 3 episodes. Kind sucks, I was starting to enjoy it.

[Toddzilla]

Threadjack

Kidnapped - the fantastic NBC show with Jeremy Sisto, Delroy Lindo, and Timothy Hutton that was cancelled after 8 episodes is out on DVD and from what I've read, the un-aired episodes were even better than what was aired, including a blockbuster last episode.

End Threadjack

[Bearcat729]

I say Boo to Fox for not giving it more a chance. I was really getting into the mystery behind the sponsors of the race and some of the characters storylines.

You would think with all the promos they did Fox would have given it more of a chance.

How many shows has Fox cancelled after 2 or 3 episodes?

[Travis]

I'll echo the boo Fox comments for cancelling Drive.

That said, memo to Tim Minear and Joss Whedon: If you have ideas for a show, don't go to Fox. Please, we'd like to see a full season or more of your work and it just simply won't happen the way you envision on that network.

[Bee]

I believe there was at least one show that Fox cancelled during the first commercial break this season.

[Ksyrup]

The lack of a character yelling "HIS FATHER IS THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY!!" really killed this show's chances of lasting another week.

Oh, and I didn't post the article, but I think the real reason it got canceled so fast is that it was hurting 24. Wih this show as the lead-in, 24 had its worst-rated show in 3 years.

[Ksyrup]

Here is is:


"Drive" received a strong promotional push on Fox's juggernaut "American Idol" and was launched with a two-night premiere, a strategy regularly used for the network's hit serialized drama "24."

But "Drive" never clicked with viewers, and its two low-rated airings on Monday seemed to hurt its leadout, "24," which posted its lowest adults 18-49 rating for an original episode in more than three years.

[Honolulu_Blue]

I'll echo the boo Fox comments for cancelling Drive.

That said, memo to Tim Minear and Joss Whedon: If you have ideas for a show, don't go to Fox. Please, we'd like to see a full season or more of your work and it just simply won't happen the way you envision on that network.

Agreed.

I feel bad for Nathan Fillion too. The guy's just awesome, but can't seem to catch a break. It seems like whatever he's in, TV or movie, is doomed to fail. It makes no sense to me.

[Travis]

Agreed.

I feel bad for Nathan Fillion too. The guy's just awesome, but can't seem to catch a break. It seems like whatever he's in, TV or movie, is doomed to fail. It makes no sense to me.

Just talking about this with a friend of mine. Hopefully the cancellation of Firefly was offset by the movie/how well the show has done post cancellation, but Slither and now Drive can't be doing his resume any good at all. Bright side is that he seems pretty popular with Minear/Whedon as well as their viewing fans, so if they could ever get a series that makes it through a season with him as the lead, sky could be the limit. Working with other groups though, I wonder if he's not going to have to play second fiddle roles for a while before getting another shot at being the lead.

Too bad as he can handle it, just been some brutal circumstances hurting him.

[TazFTW]

I'll echo the boo Fox comments for cancelling Drive.

That said, memo to Tim Minear and Joss Whedon: If you have ideas for a show, don't go to Fox. Please, we'd like to see a full season or more of your work and it just simply won't happen the way you envision on that network.

I believe Minear has a development deal with Fox, so he is stuck there.

[rkmsuf]

Nobody watched. What do you want Fox to do.

[Malificent]

I want them to treat the good shows like the X-Files and give them a chance to grab an audience.

[rkmsuf]

ain't gonna happen brotha. it's a cash money bidness.

no room for charity cases particularly if they've promoted the heck out of something like this show.

[Ksyrup]

I'm still pissed that Fox canceled Herman's Head, Flying Blind, and that Jay Mohr show so quickly. A decade-plus later, not much has changed (other than the fact that I'm not watching their shows).

[rkmsuf]

I'm still pissed that Fox canceled Herman's Head, Flying Blind, and that Jay Mohr show so quickly. A decade-plus later, not much has changed (other than the fact that I'm not watching their shows).

get over it

you are an AI whore, bro

[sabotai]

Nobody watched. What do you want Fox to do.

Not premiere shows with a seemingly random, thus confusing, premeire schedule. We don't need the first 3 episodes in 2 nights. Just pick one night, and stick to it.

I didn't watch Drive nor do I have any desire to see it, but I see plenty of shows canceled after a few weeks, and one of the constants seems to be an irregular schedule. If you premeire a show on Sunday night, chances are a lot of people who watched it, liked it, and will continue to watch it will assume it's a Sunday night show and that the next episode will not be on some other day.

[Ksyrup]

get over it

you are an AI whore, bro

OK, then I'm still pissed they only gave Donny Osmond 1 episode!

OK, not really.

[rkmsuf]

You could argue that if it was that good people would figure it out. Maybe that's part of the thinking.

[sabotai]

You could argue that if it was that good people would figure it out. Maybe that's part of the thinking.

I've learned that it's usually a mistake to think people can figure things out for themselves. Just ask Axxon. :)

[rkmsuf]

I've learned that it's usually a mistake to think people can figure things out for themselves. Just ask Axxon. :)

lol

[Ksyrup]

Ha!

[Passacaglia]

So...when's that Caveman show coming out?

[Easy Mac]

Technically 3 episodes. Kind sucks, I was starting to enjoy it.

Technically 4. The first 2-hours was really two separate episodes, but they just showed it on 1 night.

The lack of a character yelling "HIS FATHER IS THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY!!" really killed this show's chances of lasting another week.

Oh, and I didn't post the article, but I think the real reason it got canceled so fast is that it was hurting 24. Wih this show as the lead-in, 24 had its worst-rated show in 3 years.

That's why I couldn't be an exec, because for some reason I'd think the problem (like a large number of critics say) is that 24 has turned to shit this year and its quality, not its lead-in, is affecting its audience.

[kingfc22]

Technically 3 episodes. Kind sucks, I was starting to enjoy it.

Me too. FOX always does this.

Fastlane, John Doe, Firefly... They never give a show a chance.

[kingfc22]

Oh, and I didn't post the article, but I think the real reason it got canceled so fast is that it was hurting 24. Wih this show as the lead-in, 24 had its worst-rated show in 3 years.


I've been a fan of 24 since the start, but this season BLOWS. Not to mention that NBC has this show called Heroes that is kicking 24's ass right now. So I don't buy the fact taht Drive is responsible for 24's decline.

[Bee]

So...when's that Caveman show coming out?


Not sure but I keep seeing ads for it. Looks like the woman that was in the Rocky movies plays a therapist on the show.

[RedKingGold]

I refuse to give a show my attention unless it shows some staying power. While it might be counterproductive because if no one watches a new show, then it will be canceled. However, nothing is more annoying than getting into a show, only to find it being canceled a few episodes in.

It was SportsNight that really burned me. I didn't start watching until the first season was in the can, and got really into the second season when ABC pulled the rug out from underneath. Besides, my time is pretty much limited anyway, so my usual run down of shows (non-sports related) now includes:

My Name is Earl
The Office
The Simpsons
American Idol
House
The Sopranos
Entourage

God, I'm such a Fox whore. I could never really get into CSI or 24, although I probably have not given 24 a realistic chance? I was really into Studio 60, but kind of fell out of love with it (I might give it another chance this summer).

Anyone have other shows they might want to suggest that I'm not really giving a realistic chance. As you can tell by my current watching list, I'm mainly into slapstick or smart comedies.

[BrianD]

Me too. FOX always does this.

Fastlane, John Doe, Firefly... They never give a show a chance.

At least they let John Doe get to the end of the season...though I still don't get why they didn't bring it back for a second season.

[Dr. Sak]

Anyone have other shows they might want to suggest that I'm not really giving a realistic chance. As you can tell by my current watching list, I'm mainly into slapstick or smart comedies.

Family Guy
How I Met Your Mother

[RedKingGold]

Family Guy

I LOVED Family Guy for the first two-to-three seasons. I watched the DVD's religously and was very, very excited when it was put back on television. Unfortunately, I felt the quality of the show went down very quickly and was just not funny anymore (ex: The Radio Show silly sign-off thing...I get it, it was annoying in real life and even more annoying for five minutes of a single 22 minute episode).

Also, not really a sitcom guy after Full House in my early teenage years. What can I say, I'm very hard to please.

[MikeVic]

I refuse to give a show my attention unless it shows some staying power. While it might be counterproductive because if no one watches a new show, then it will be canceled. However, nothing is more annoying than getting into a show, only to find it being canceled a few episodes in.

It was SportsNight that really burned me. I didn't start watching until the first season was in the can, and got really into the second season when ABC pulled the rug out from underneath. Besides, my time is pretty much limited anyway, so my usual run down of shows (non-sports related) now includes:

My Name is Earl
The Office
The Simpsons
American Idol
House
The Sopranos
Entourage

God, I'm such a Fox whore. I could never really get into CSI or 24, although I probably have not given 24 a realistic chance? I was really into Studio 60, but kind of fell out of love with it (I might give it another chance this summer).

Anyone have other shows they might want to suggest that I'm not really giving a realistic chance. As you can tell by my current watching list, I'm mainly into slapstick or smart comedies.

Have you tried Scrubs? If you start from the first season, you'll come across some very good episodes.

[ISiddiqui]

You could argue that if it was that good people would figure it out. Maybe that's part of the thinking.

Unfortunately that doesn't work that well. See "Arrested Development", "Freaks & Geeks", etc. Some really good shows have just failed to grab an audience. Some may have gained one later on as the buzz around the show increased, but we'll never know.

[rkmsuf]

Unfortunately that doesn't work that well. See "Arrested Development", "Freaks & Geeks", etc. Some really good shows have just failed to grab an audience. Some may have gained one later on as the buzz around the show increased, but we'll never know.

But nobody watched hence they weren't "good". Maybe artistically they may be well done but if nobody watches bfd to Fox. They can't sit around and hope something magically catches fire. You could argue that the only reason some shows gain a buzz is because they ARE cancelled. Left on their own maybe there is no great groundswell.

[Honolulu_Blue]

You could argue that if it was that good people would figure it out. Maybe that's part of the thinking.

If that's part of their thinking then they are even stupider than they appear.

[Honolulu_Blue]

But nobody watched hence they weren't "good".

Uh. No. Just because a bunch of people watch something doesn't make it good. It makes it popular and profitable, but not necessarily good. But TV stations and movie studios are business, so profit really is the only thing that matters, so even when I don't like their decisions, it's hard to argue, unless, of course, they took active steps to actually hinder a show's success as Fox has done. That's just stupid business.

Also, by evidence of certain show's post-cancelation fame (e.g, Firefly, Freaks and Geeks), it turns out that perhaps the studios were a bit too quick to cancel. Had they rode out the early year, perhaps they would have reaped the reward later on. That's a tough call to make.

[rkmsuf]

hence the quote fingers "good"

[ISiddiqui]

Even with the quoted "good", it doesn't always work. Instead of letting an audience grow, they expect an audience from day one. When you have shows like Family Guy and Firefly having DVD sales go through the roof, you can see the network made a mistake by cancelling the series.

Remember, Seinfeld had bad ratings its first season and the only reason it wasn't canceled is because Tartikoff at NBC personally liked the show and wanted to give it a chance. A few seasons later it gained and audience and took off.

[rkmsuf]

Even with the quoted "good", it doesn't always work. Instead of letting an audience grow, they expect an audience from day one. When you have shows like Family Guy and Firefly having DVD sales go through the roof, you can see the network made a mistake by cancelling the series.

Remember, Seinfeld had bad ratings its first season and the only reason it wasn't canceled is because Tartikoff at NBC personally liked the show and wanted to give it a chance. A few seasons later it gained and audience and took off.

that's a fair point. I'm just thinking about a show like Drive where the promotion was heavy and it fell flat on it's face. seems like a reasonable decision to bail on it.

[Travis]

While I would have liked to see Drive continue on, at least (to my knowledge) Fox didn't butcher the airing of it the way they did Firefly. Seeing the air dates for the episodes compared to the order Whedon wanted them aired in (never mind using a different episode for the premier), Fox has nobody to blame for that one other than themselves.

[Ksyrup]

The days of shows like Seinfeld and Cheers getting not just an entire season, but multiple seasons, to prove themselves are gone. I think the proper place for shows like this (good shows that have a small but defined following) are on cable specialty channels. The big boys need to make money; promoting shows as good pieces of art is decidedly secondary. IIRC, this is what Fox did with that Jay Mohr show - ran the remaining episodes on FX, I think.

[JonInMiddleGA]

http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/cat_index_31.asp#11727

Upfront update: Adult Swim expands to seven nights
Cartoon Network’s late-night alter ego, Adult Swim, has been producing best-ever ratings of late, so it seems like a smart time for it to launch a seventh night of programming. At its upfront presentation yesterday, the network said it will begin airing original programming on Fridays starting July 6. Adult Swim also introduced four new programs: “Fat Guy Stuck In Internet,” about a programmer who gets sucked into his computer; “Superjail,” about the most violent jail in the universe; and the previously announced “Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil” and “Robot Chicken: Star Wars.” In addition to those, a number of shows have been renewed for new seasons, including: “Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” “Assy McGee,” “Tim and Eric Awesome Show,” “Great Job,” “Moral Orel,” “Frisky Dingo,” “Robot Chicken,” “The Boondocks,” “Metalocalypse,” “The Venture Bros.,” “Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law” and “Squidbillies.” During the week ended April 22, Adult Swim averaged 336,000 viewers 18-24, according to Nielsen data analyzed by Turner Networks, up 64 percent over the same week last year and a new weekly record for the network.

[sabotai]

http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/cat_index_31.asp#11727

Upfront update: Adult Swim expands to seven nights
Cartoon Network’s late-night alter ego, Adult Swim, has been producing best-ever ratings of late, so it seems like a smart time for it to launch a seventh night of programming. At its upfront presentation yesterday, the network said it will begin airing original programming on Fridays starting July 6. Adult Swim also introduced four new programs: “Fat Guy Stuck In Internet,” about a programmer who gets sucked into his computer; “Superjail,” about the most violent jail in the universe; and the previously announced “Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil” and “Robot Chicken: Star Wars.” In addition to those, a number of shows have been renewed for new seasons, including: “Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” “Assy McGee,” “Tim and Eric Awesome Show,” “Great Job,” “Moral Orel,” “Frisky Dingo,” “Robot Chicken,” “The Boondocks,” “Metalocalypse,” “The Venture Bros.,” “Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law” and “Squidbillies.” During the week ended April 22, Adult Swim averaged 336,000 viewers 18-24, according to Nielsen data analyzed by Turner Networks, up 64 percent over the same week last year and a new weekly record for the network.

*happy dance*

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm still pissed that Fox canceled Herman's Head, Flying Blind, and that Jay Mohr show so quickly. A decade-plus later, not much has changed (other than the fact that I'm not watching their shows).
I'm late to the party, but I agree with this post 100%.

[Easy Mac]

In case people wanted to know, the last 2 episodes of Drive are being burned off on July 4. So I hope that day is clear on your schedule.

http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/05/08/final-two-episodes-of-drive-to-air-july-4th/

[Ksyrup]

Although I haven't seen confirmation of this other than in a news article, I believe the second season of VH1's World Series of Pop Culture begins on July 8th. I know somebody on another board who is in the tournament and there was an article about him that gave the date. This guy is roughly the equivalent of Quiksand on a music-related board, so this should be interesting.

[Ksyrup]

Here's a good article describing some of the summer shows that will be on:


Summer Reality Shows: K-Fed's Ex, Pirates and Paula Abdul

Friday, May 25, 2007

Ah, summer. Makes you think of beaches, boats, bikinis — and new reality shows meant to keep you inside and away from those activities.

Don't believe me? Just remember that back when they were surprise hits, "American Idol" and "Dancing with the Stars (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#)" originally started off as summer fare.

Of course, "I Want to Be a Hilton" — a 2005 flop of a show — also premiered at this time. Below, my personal predictions for "Idol"-like success and "Hilton"-esque failure:

The biggest hype seems to be surrounding "Pirate Master" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22Pirate Master,%22');) (CBS), Mark Burnett's (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#) semi-"Survivor" spin-off.

While having people compete to be the best pillager seems a bit weird, I will accept the fact that something about Johnny Depp adopting a Keith Richards persona in those "Pirates of the Caribbean (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#)" movies has made the whole world go a bit pirate crazy, and that searching for hidden treasure seems to perfectly meld latent childhood fantasy with grown-up materialism.

"On the Lot" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22On the Lot,%22');) (FOX), a sort of "Project Greenlight" with Carrie Fisher (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#), Garry Marshall and Brett Ratner, has the added advantage of being the first reality show to have the Steven Spielberg (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('Steven Spielberg');) golden touch (he and the ubiquitous Burnett are teaming up as producers).

Rather than having one writer and one director make a movie that will inevitably be thoroughly ignored upon release, "On the Lot" allows its contestants to work on all aspects of production where they'll make shorts instead of feature-length projects. Which means that if they're terrible, you don't have to lose 90 minutes of your life that you'll never get back.

For those who can't get enough of Kevin Federline (all one or two of you), his pre-Britney girlfriend — and mother of two Federbabies — Shar Jackson will be joining other well-known ex-wives Marla Maples and Angie Everhart (who was married to the son of George Ashley Hamilton (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#) and engaged to Sylvester Stallone) for "The Ex-Wives Club" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22The Ex-Wives Club.%22');) (ABC). The three — who seem more like poster children for questionable decision-making than self-help gurus — will be helping recent divorcees get their lives back together.

While I'm not sure anyone should be taking advice from them, viewers will certainly tune in to see if they're witnessing a train wreck or just undeniably watchable bad TV.

Returning summer shows include "Big Brother" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22Big Brother,%22');) (CBS), "American Inventor" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22American Inventor,%22');) (ABC), "So You Think You Can Dance" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22So You Think You Can Dance,%22');) (FOX), "Hell's Kitchen" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22Hell's Kitchen,%22');) (FOX), "America's Got Talent" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22America's Got Talent,%22');) (NBC), "Last Comic Standing" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22Last Comic Standing,%22');) (NBC), "Top Chef" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22Top Chef,%22');) (Bravo), "The Simple Life" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22The Simple Life,%22');) (E!), "The Hills" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22The Hills,%22');) (MTV), "The Surreal Life" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22The Surreal Life,%22');) (VH1) and "The Biggest Loser" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22The Biggest Loser.%22');) (NBC).

Also joining the fray: shows covering everything from celebrity impersonators ("Next Best Thing" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('(%22Next Best Thing%22)');) on ABC) to weight-loss for kids (Shaq's Big Challenge (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('(%22Shaq's Big Challenge');)," on ABC) to the day-in, day-out shenanigans of Paula Abdul ("Hey Paula," (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('(%22Hey Paula%22).');) on Bravo).

A group of people doing their best Christopher Walken as well as details about how the wackiest of "Idol"'s judging committee behaves in her free time?

I say forget filling the beach cooler and load up the TiVo instead.

[bosshogg23]

"On the Lot" (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('%22On the Lot,%22');) (FOX), a sort of "Project Greenlight" with Carrie Fisher (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,275213,00.html#), Garry Marshall and Brett Ratner, has the added advantage of being the first reality show to have the Steven Spielberg (http://javascript<b></b>:siteSearch('Steven Spielberg');) golden touch (he and the ubiquitous Burnett are teaming up as producers).

Rather than having one writer and one director make a movie that will inevitably be thoroughly ignored upon release, "On the Lot" allows its contestants to work on all aspects of production where they'll make shorts instead of feature-length projects. Which means that if they're terrible, you don't have to lose 90 minutes of your life that you'll never get back.

I watched the first 2 episodes of the show. Its ok, not great. Spielberg hasn't yet made an appearance. Once the director is selected, I am curious whether the making of the film will be a show as well(like Project Greenlight). It would seem to be a nice 10 episode advertisement for the movie.

The directors that are on the show DO seem to have some talent. One guy on the show created some special effects work in a few hours that was pretty impressive.

Just a side note, Carrie Fisher's face lift looks absolutely terrible.

[Ksyrup]

I'm looking forward to Hell's Kitchen, which I think debuts next Monday. I'm not sure about some of the other "summer" shows, since The Biggest Loser's premiere date is September 25th. That's not summer, especially by TV standards.

[wade moore]

I watched the first 2 episodes of the show. Its ok, not great. Spielberg hasn't yet made an appearance. Once the director is selected, I am curious whether the making of the film will be a show as well(like Project Greenlight). It would seem to be a nice 10 episode advertisement for the movie.

The directors that are on the show DO seem to have some talent. One guy on the show created some special effects work in a few hours that was pretty impressive.


Just a side note, Carrie Fisher's face lift looks absolutely terrible.Your thoughts pretty much echo mine here... I'm curious to see how the show morphs and is handled when audience voting comes in - that could make or break it for me..Being summer fair helps of course because there are just so many fewer options for my poor little TiVO.

[Ksyrup]

Hell's Kitchen starts on Monday. Looking forward to it. The commercial with the chubby guy who can't stop balling is funny as hell.

And I mentioned it briefly earlier in this thread, but the World Series of Pop Culture starts July 9th on VH1. A guy I know from another board - he's like the Quiksand of pop culture/music - is on a team called the Twisted Misters. He can't say, but we think they did really well, seeing as though they are featured in the first commercial. He's the one in the sleeveless Union Jack shirt:


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[Pumpy Tudors]

Hell's Kitchen is probably my favorite of all the reality contests. I don't know a damn thing about cooking, but Gordon Ramsay makes me laugh all the time. That's good enough for me.

I met somebody a few weeks ago who tried out for the World Series of Pop Culture, but he didn't make it. I've only seen that show once, and I liked it a lot. Maybe I'll remember to watch it this time around.

[sachmo71]

I saw an ad for a new series on the history channel following the journey of ice truckers. Can't wait to watch...those dudes are crazy.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I saw an ad for a new series on the history channel following the journey of ice truckers. Can't wait to watch...those dudes are crazy.
What's an ice trucker? The guy who drives around and drops off those plastic bags of ice at convenience and liquor stores?

[sachmo71]

What's an ice trucker? The guy who drives around and drops off those plastic bags of ice at convenience and liquor stores?

actually, that should be ice ROAD truckers.

Here's some info on ice roads (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_road).

At the bottom of the page you can see some trucks that cracked through the ice (http://www.thedieselgypsy.com/Ice%20Roads-3B-Denison.htm).

[Pumpy Tudors]

actually, that should be ice ROAD truckers.

Here's some info on ice roads (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_road).

At the bottom of the page you can see some trucks that cracked through the ice (http://www.thedieselgypsy.com/Ice%20Roads-3B-Denison.htm).
Oh, shit. I had never heard of these before. Yeah, you'd have to be pretty crazy to drive a big truck over those things. Yikes.

[sachmo71]

Oh, shit. I had never heard of these before. Yeah, you'd have to be pretty crazy to drive a big truck over those things. Yikes.

I saw a show on ice road trucking on Modern Marvels a few years ago and was facinated. You see regular trucks going on these roads, but they move everything that these towns need. Silos, huge generators, whatever. The thing that got me was that as they drive, the ice is cracking under them constantly, so you hear that while you are driving in a snowstorm, over a lake...at night...yikes.

[bosshogg23]

I saw a show on ice road trucking on Modern Marvels a few years ago and was facinated. You see regular trucks going on these roads, but they move everything that these towns need. Silos, huge generators, whatever. The thing that got me was that as they drive, the ice is cracking under them constantly, so you hear that while you are driving in a snowstorm, over a lake...at night...yikes.

I watched that episode of Modern Marvels as well. Until Dirty Jobs came around, I thought that driving on the Ice Road was about the worst job you could have. Looking forward to the series on the Ice Truckers.

[Ksyrup]

So the season premiere of Hell's Kitchen last night was awesome. I kinda get the feeling they loaded the show with a bunch of losers and a few legit candidates, though, to maximize the entertainment value a bit more. Allen, the gigantic-headed, 48-year old dude who looks 15, clearly can't handle any type of pressure (he cooks in a retirement home and broke out crying twice during the show last night!). And it appears he'll break down again next week, plus pass out at some point right in the middle of the kitchen.

And the women...I haven't seen a group of people live up to a stereotype so perfectly since I don't know when. Do you think a group of women, competing against each other but grouped as a team, would do anything but bitch at each other all show? Hell no! That was embarrassing. And then for most of them to put down that Julia chick because she works at Waffle House was terrible. Although the chick who was considered the least knowledgeable and got shut out last season the way Julia did last night did get knocked out early, so Julia better start asserting herself or she's going home soon.

But Allen clearly needs to remove himself from the show. I honestly felt bad for him as he was blubbering away. Even Ramsay tried to be nice to him during his second meltdown.

[Ksyrup]

Watched that Ice Road Truckers show last night. Pretty interesting. The only negative about it is that it is such a paint-by-numbers copy of Deadliest Catch, it almost has a plug-and-play feel to it. Thom Beers produces both shows, and you can tell. Everything is precisely the same, from the graphics detailing where each trucker/fisherman is, to the load/crab count graphic at precisely 9 minutes before the end of the show, to the interview segments. I guess once you've got a winning formula there's no reason to change it, but a little variety would have been nice.

[Ksyrup]

Bump as an FYI re VH1's World Series of Pop Culture. It officially airs tonight at 9pm, although they ran an unannounced airing of the premiere last night. That will air again tonight, and there will be new episodes through Thursday. There are 8 total episodes, although I don't know exactly what the plan is for airing the other 4.

[BrianD]

Bump as an FYI re VH1's World Series of Pop Culture. It officially airs tonight at 9pm, although they ran an unannounced airing of the premiere last night. That will air again tonight, and there will be new episodes through Thursday. There are 8 total episodes, although I don't know exactly what the plan is for airing the other 4.

Thanks for the reminder. I had forgotten about this.

[Ksyrup]

As I mentioned a while back, one of the guys from another board I frequent is on the show. He debuts tomorrow. Here's the thread from the other board that was started today in his honor. Since the first episode ran yesterday, there is some spoiler info about the show in general in there, so you've been warned. I'm not sure how far the guy gets or what he can really contribute to the thread, but it's kinda cool.

hxxp://soundopinions.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=12181

[Ksyrup]

Well, that show got off to a decent start last night. The chick from The White Russians who didn't know lyrics by The Police, Prince, or The Clash was awful. Possibly the worst pop culture contestant of all time. Honestly, you could have picked someone from off the street and they would have fared better. "I was only 2 when that song was released. I don't know it." Yikes.

[BrianD]

Well, that show got off to a decent start last night. The chick from The White Russians who didn't know lyrics by The Police, Prince, or The Clash was awful. Possibly the worst pop culture contestant of all time. Honestly, you could have picked someone from off the street and they would have fared better. "I was only 2 when that song was released. I don't know it." Yikes.

I thought she was amazingly bad as well, though the first season had a team that was pretty young and they did poorly too. I find it strange that these teams make it all the way through qualifying to get to the show. The 80s are a big part of these pop-culture contests. I also thought the categories in this first episode were a little weaker than last year's. Celebrity feuds in 2006? Tarantino flicks? They just seem slightly more obscure. It was still decent and I am looking forward to the rest, but I found it to be a dubious start.

[Ksyrup]

So Andrew's team, the Twisted Misters, barely made it through last night. He missed the "Let's be careful out there" HSB question. Although the discussion over at the other board is the number of answers they let through that weren't technically correct. For instance, in that question, the other team stole it with the answer, "And be careful out there." That's not the exact quote. So there's some controversy. I guess this game show is lax on exact answers.

[Icy]

Looking forward for a new season of Friday Night Lights. Has it been announced?

[DanGarion]

Looking forward for a new season of Friday Night Lights. Has it been announced?

Yes I'm pretty sure it was retained.

[BrianD]

So Andrew's team, the Twisted Misters, barely made it through last night. He missed the "Let's be careful out there" HSB question. Although the discussion over at the other board is the number of answers they let through that weren't technically correct. For instance, in that question, the other team stole it with the answer, "And be careful out there." That's not the exact quote. So there's some controversy. I guess this game show is lax on exact answers.

I watched last night's show and came back to this thread to see which team your friend was in. I was really hoping it wasn't the Twisted Misters because they are the most annoying team I have ever seen. I was rooting against them before they even hit the stage. Hopefully by the next round they will have been told that they can just answer questions without giving a long story for each answer.

[Ksyrup]

Ha! Andrew's pretty cool. He was the one in the Union Jack shirt. Tonight's show was really good. Some funny moments, much better than the first 2 episodes combined.

[Dr. Sak]

Yes I'm pretty sure it was retained.

Yeah Friday Night's at either 9 or 10pm EST.

[Ksyrup]

I watched last night's show and came back to this thread to see which team your friend was in. I was really hoping it wasn't the Twisted Misters because they are the most annoying team I have ever seen. I was rooting against them before they even hit the stage. Hopefully by the next round they will have been told that they can just answer questions without giving a long story for each answer.

So this was Andrew's cryptic comment after tonight's show:

"So it is Monday that will bring about perhaps the most shameful moment of my entire life."

[Ksyrup]

I should have known that when Andrew's "most shameful moment" was losing a difficult tiebreaker in a match his team ultimately won, that means they did pretty damn good. Twisted Mister won the whole thing! Very exciting. Victor was really the only one who came off arrogant - the 2 Andrew's were too dorky to be that arrogant.

[Ksyrup]

I consider it my duty to inform the world that yes, you CAN have two self-destructive has-beens for the price of one!


http://www.twocoreys.com/images/poster.jpg

[BrianD]

I should have known that when Andrew's "most shameful moment" was losing a difficult tiebreaker in a match his team ultimately won, that means they did pretty damn good. Twisted Mister won the whole thing! Very exciting. Victor was really the only one who came off arrogant - the 2 Andrew's were too dorky to be that arrogant.

There were a number of teams I was rooting for before this one, but they really earned their vicrtory. They did very well on some tough tie-breakers. I think they were clearly the best team out there.