News Brief

.. Mike & Molly is adding some star power via Academy Award-winner Susan Sarandon, who will guest-star as JC Small, a literary icon and an idol of Molly’s.

... Jere Burns, who has spent the last four years as recurring character Wynn Duffy on Justified, has finally been upped to a series regular on the FX drama. This is fantastic news for fans, but probably not-so-great news for Timothy Olyphant's Raylan Givens. An increased presence in Season 5 probably spells more trouble for Harlan County. 

... Taye Diggs is visiting New Girl! He'll play Artie, a "self-assured ladies’ man" who Jess and Cece meet at a bar while Nick is preoccupied with guys' night. But it's not just any guys' night, because the episode also marks the return of Damon Wayans Jr.'s character, Coach.

... Adam Pally of the groundbreaking series Happy Endings has been upped to a series regular on The Mindy Project. His character, Peter, is the newest ob-gyn in Mindy's practice. 

... Beth Riesgraf (Leverage) has landed a role on ABC's Tricia Helfer-fronted midseason drama Killer Women. She'll appear in the second episode as Jennifer Jennings (that's unfortunate), an interior decorator who has a secret side-business that may or may not involve murdering people.

... Janina Gavankar (all the TV shows) and Khary Payton (General Hospital) have signed on to star opposite Ben Rappaport in USA's new comedy pilot Love Is Dead, about a romance in reverse, starting with the break-up. [Deadline]

... Enlisted, which was recently moved to midseason, has cast Stacy Keach (Prison Break), Dean Stockwell (Battlestar Galactica), and Barry Bostwick (Spin City) as a trio of army veterans who return to the base for a funeral. It eventually becomes clear they're the older versions of the Hill brothers, played by Geoff Stults, Chris Lowell, and Parker Young. 

... TNT has ordered 10 episodes of the Steven Bochco-created drama series Murder in the First. It stars Taye Diggs (who recently landed a guest spot on New Girl) and Kathleen Robertson as homicide detectives investigating the murder of an apparent drug addict. Much like The Killing, The Bridge, and Broadchurch, the series will take on one case per season. Because that really seems to be working out so well for the majority of the series that attempt it.

... Fox has given a pilot order to The Middle Man, Ben Affleck is set to direct and executive producer the pilot so absolutely no one should be surprised when I tell you that it is set in Boston in the 1960s and explores the relationship between FBI Agent Rudy MacAteer and Mickey Flood, an Irish-American gangster and confidential informant. Glenn Gordon Caron (Moonlighting, Medium) wrote the pilot and will also executive produce. 

... ABC wants to know what life would be like for Americans had they lost the Revolutionary War back in the 1700s. They've put a project into development titled The Thirteen that will explore a contemporary world in which Americans are still at war with the British over their freedom. This brings to light several questions: If we lost the war, how did World War I end? Why did we stop at 13 colonies? Do we drive on the left side of the road? And more importantly, would we be forced to pay for a TV license, too?

... Casey Wilson, Jonathan Groff and June Diane Raphael (Happy Endings ceators) have sold DINKS to ABC. DINKS, which is an acronym for “Double Income, No Kids,” is about a pair of thirtysomethings who find themselves struggling between life with kids and life without them. 

ABC is developing an event series based on Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It's being written by Evan Daugherty, who's also to blame for Snow White and the Huntsman. The project is titled Esmerelda and will tell the story from the Gypsy Esmerelda's point of view. 

... Netflix was ready to swoop in on Better Call Saul, the Saul Goodman-focused Breaking Bad spin-off, if AMC and Sony had been unable to come to a licensing agreement. 

News Brief : A lotta number(s) news for shows aired last week

Its numbers time, The Big Bang Theory shows its still the numbers-king, NCIS is still the most watched crime drama procedural. After all the media hype and buzz in the summer, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. had an impressive series premiere. The Emmys also had an impressive night on sunday night with increase in viewership from last year's event. Cable shows also continues to draw in big numbers, as Dexter goes out with a bang, Ray Donovan and Devious Maids end their first season on a high.

.. Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the most talked-about new series of the fall, premiered last night to 12.1 million viewers, coming in with a 4.7 rating in the 18-49 demo. That's ABC's largest premiere in three years,and Joss Whedon's largest premiere in the history of the universe. The show premiered last week to impressive ratings, scoring the best debut of a new drama in all of television since 2009’s V.

...  In another numbers news, NCIS pulled in 20.02 million viewers and had its third largest season-opening audience ever. What kind of voodoo magic are those kids practicing that they get that many viewers?

... The Big Bang Theory also returned last week to its biggest ratings ever. 20.44 million viewers tuned in for the Season 7 premiere.

... Congratulations, Emmys! had the biggest audience for the awards show since 2005. Sunday's broadcast on CBS averaged 17.63 million viewers, up a third from last years telecast on ABC.

... More ratings! Dexter's apparently disappointing final episode reached the series' biggest audience yet, with 2.8 million viewers tuning in for the initial airing. Ray Donovan's Season 1 finale also did well, with 2.1 million viewers. That's a Showtime best for a freshman series' season finale. As for Breaking Bad, it continued to be awesome and rise in the ratings even with a lot of competition from Dexter and the Emmys, and hit a series high with 6.6 million viewers. Remember when you had to convince people to try to watch this show? While we're at it, let's just mention that Lifetime's Devious Maids wrapped up its first season on Sunday, and 3 million viewers watched that for a season high.

... FOX's Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Dads both premiered to okay numbers last night (6 million viewers and a 2.5 demo rating, and 5.6 million viewers and a 2.1 demo rating, respectively). This is sort of disappointing for Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which I've heard called the best new comedy of the fall

... FX has concluded that the Season 6 premiere of Sons of Anarchy has become the most-watched FX broadcast of all time. So far, it's accumulated 8.32 million viewers.

Back to other news apart from viewership ratings and numbers

 ... Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The most anticipated new show of the season debuted to big numbers for ABC, but very mixed reviews. Some people loved it, some people thought it was only mediocre, some people were very confused (and in some cases angered) by the lack of superheroes (which means they didn't read anything that came out before the series premiered). But regardless of what The People thought, it was a strong start for ABC, Marvel, and the Joss Whedon himself.

... James Spade is back on TV and carrying most of NBC's new—and largely mediocre—FBI thriller The Blacklist on his shoulders. But the series is worth a look to just to see the actor (who plays a most-wanted criminal who suddenly surrenders himself to the FBI) chew scenery, cling to every pregnant pause, and let lines like "Well I think you're special," slide out of his mouth.

... Another edition of NCIS again! So another spin-off is in the works. The new series would be set in and around New Orleans, with a backdoor pilot planned for a super-sized spring episode of the original series. NCIS star Mark Harmon would produce, with fall 2014 a likely debut date for what can only be called NCIS: NO.

... A Walking Dead spinoff, AMC announced that it's developing a "companion series" (a.k.a. a fancy term for spin-off) of its zombie mega-hit The Walking Dead. The new series will focus on "an entirely new story and cast of characters," and Robert Kirkman, who created the comics, will serve as a co-executive producer along with Walking Dead EPs Gale Anne Hurd and David Alpert. The series, which doesn't currently have a title, is expected to premiere in 2015.

... Ken Jeong, better known as Chang from Community ( The Hangover triologies), is set to star and produce in a medical multi-camera comedy on NBC. Dr. Ken will loosely be based on Jeong's own experience as a real physician (he was a doctor before he turned to acting). Can't wait for this.

... TNT has canceled its drama King & Maxwell after one season. The series starred Rebecca Romijn and Jon Tenney as secret-service agents who became private eyes.

News Brief : Renewals and Cancellations

.... Lifetime cancels Army Wives after 7 seasons
Lifetime has decided to divorce Army Wives—its longest-running original series—after several mostly happy years together. The show concluded its seventh and now final season this past June.

continue reading.....


.... FX Renews The Bridge for Season 2
I get the feeling that FX wasn't too sure about this one, but the network has gone ahead and ordered a second season of The Bridge anyway. Season 2 will run for another 13 episodes and reclaim the show's status as a summer series in 2014. The renewal comes late in The Bridge's first season.

... ABC Renews Mistresses for Season 2
Mistresses, the trashy summer series will be back for a second season. That's right, Mistresses, the ABC soap starring Alyssa Milano, will be back next year. Apparently, the show was the number-two scripted network drama of the summer behind Under the Dome.
Mistresses left literally dozens of viewers hanging by a thread with a Season 1 finale that was bloated with awesome and full of insane, unresolved cliffhangers. Now we'll finally find out whether Milano's character Savi survived her terrible merge onto the freeway in her sweet ride, we'll see how her white husband reacts to her half-black baby (oopsie!), and we'll learn whether Yunjin Kim's character was shot by a crazy Penelope Ann Miller.

.... HBO renews Boardwalk Empire for Season 5
HBO has put some extra cash in the pockets of organized crime and re-upped Boardwalk Empire for a fifth season, just three episodes into Season 4. The move continues HBO's tradition of quick renewals, and was likely nudged along by Boardwalk's performance at this year's Primetime Emmy Awards: In addition to Bobby Cannavale's surprising win for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama on Sunday, the series also bagged trophies for Outstanding Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series, Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series, Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour), and Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series. HBO hasn't announced an episode count or target air date for Season 5, but if history is any indication (and shouldn't it be, for a period piece like this one?) "12" and "fall 2014" would be pretty safe bets.
Boardwalk Empire's still-young fourth season is averaging 7.5 million viewers per episode, according to HBO, and the show is almost certainly hoping that it will continue to earn critical recognition now that it's introduced even more potentially award-winning characters in Ron Livingston's Roy Philips and Patricia Arquette's Sally Wheet. Jeffrey Wright's Dr. Valentin Narcisse may even be an Emmy lock. Only three episodes in, the guy is quite an intriguing villain, and a perfect foil to Michael Kenneth Williams' criminally underutilized Chalky White.

... BBC America cancels Copper
I regret to inform you that BBC America has decided to pull the plug on its period drama Copper after only two seasons. The series followed Detective Kevin Corcoran (Tom Weston-Jones) in post-Civil War era New York City as he struggled with his own personal demons and the demons that plagued the slums of Five Points New York. The Season 2 finale on September 22 will now serve as a series finale.

News Briefs : FOX and NBC join the comic craze

In the news; FOX does Gotham with no Batman, while NBC enters the world of magic. The growing trend of American stations and networks of  remaking foreign TV shows instead of coming up with new ideas continues;




... Not wanting to be left out of the superhero genre now that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken over the airwaves, FOX has decided to get in on the genre action with a Batman-adjacent project titled Gotham that will explore Commissioner James Gordon and the bad guys who made the fake city famous.

.. NBC is also jumping on the Comic Book trend with a Constantine series. Based on the DC comics which was adapted some years ago into a Keanu Reeves starrer.

... A&E has secured the rights to the French supernatural drama Les Revenants (which translates to The Returned). The series is set in a small town where people start coming back from the dead without having aged at all, and with no recollection of actually dying. There's a rumor that Carlton Cuse (Lost, Bates Motel) is in talks to adapt the project. But  Sundance Channel recently acquired the rights to broadcast the original series, which will air in the U.S. beginning October 31.

... Damon Wayans Jr. (Second Generation Wayans) is teaming up with FOX for his next project. Man/Child is about two single dads who move in together and struggle to strike a balance being a responsible adult and living a life of debauchery.

... Spartacus vets Aaron Helbing and Todd Helbing are developing a new series for Starz about an Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent who infiltrates a Mexican drug cartel. The project, titled Gringo, was inspired by the nonfiction book "The Shadow Catcher" by Hipolito Acosta.

... Bones creator Hart Hanson, along with The Secret Circle creator Andrew Miller, will adapt Chris Ewan's book series "The Good Thief’s Guide" for ABC. The story follows Charlie Howard, a charming fellow who travels the world while blogging about his adventures. Oh yeah, and he steals stuff for funsies (and sometimes profit). Each season will be set in a new exotic location and focus on one particular heist

CASTING NEWS

... Scott Wolf (Perception) is heading to NBC's midseason drama The Night Shift as a day shift trauma surgeon engaged to Jill Flint's doctor character.

... Laura Benanti (Go On), who can next be seen on NBC's upcoming live Sound of Music special, is dropping by Elementary! She'll play a nanny who quickly becomes the main suspect in her employer's death

... Hey, Game of Thrones book fans, the role of Hizdahr zo Loraq has finally been cast for the upcoming fourth season of the TV show. This means nothing to those of us who are still trying to finish Book 1, but the role has gone to British actor Joel Fry (10,000 BC). Hizdahr plays a role in Daenerys Targaryen's story.

... David Milch's new project, The Money, has scored another big-name actor in Nathan Lane. He'll join Brendan Gleeson in the series about an American media mogul's dynastic family, playing Gordon McCarren, a reporter for the New York Herald who hasn't had a byline in weeks and is desperate for a good story to come along.

... Jack Coleman (remember Heroes?, Castle, Burn Notice), has landed a recurring role on ABC's Scandal. The details of his character, however, are being safely guarded by Shonda Rhimes' minions. But we can tell you that his first appearance will happen sometime in October.

... The casting for Syfy's new pilot Dominion has really gotten under way. Anthony Stewart Head, who played Rupert Giles on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has been cast as David Weel, the power-hungry president of the Senate of Vega. Also new to the project are Roxanne McKee (Game of Thrones) as Claire Rysen, the closest thing Vega has to a princess; Luke Allen-Gale (Ripper Street), who'll play William Weel, the son of David and the Head of the Church of the Savior; and Shivani Ghai (Bride & Prejudice) as Arika, a lead diplomat sent from Helena, a mysterious and militant matriarchal society. They join the previously announced Christopher Egan and Tom Wisdom.

... Lucy, the socially awkward lady friend of Raj's who dumped him in The Big Bang Theory's May finale, might be experiencing a change of heart with regard to Koothrappali. Actress Kate Micucci will reprise her role in the November 14 episode.

... Warehouse 13 vet Joanne Kelly has booked a major recurring role on CBS's thriller Hostages. She'll play Vanessa, an ambassador and the sister of the first lady.

News Brief : Post 'Breaking Bad' era or Creator and actor

Breaking Bad Creator and actor move on to other projects, E! has started their own scripted series,Robert De Niro replaces the late James Gandolfini , more people join The Mindy Project and more......




... Breaking Bad may not be over until Walt says it's over—or at least until this Sunday—but series creator Vince Gilligan has lined up his next TV gig. CBS has ordered Battle Creek, a drama about two detectives with differing views and attitudes in Battle Creek, Michigan, to series for the 2014-2015 TV season. Along for the ride are House creator David Shore, who will serve as showrunner, and Breaking Bad alum Mark Johnson, who'll executive-produce alongside Gilligan.

... The CW is developing Red, a sci-fi Western drama from The Mentalist creator Bruno Heller and executive producer Tom Szentgyorgyi. The project is about the first human settlement on Mars and centers on the relationships between the town’s female sheriff, a doctor, and a criminal.

... Robert Zemeckis has partnered with Clifton Campbell (The Glades) for Billy Ray, which has a put pilot commitment from FOX, is about a family whose world is turned upside-down when their child who was kidnapped as a baby returns home to them at the age of 16 after being raised by a wackadoodle.

CASTING NEWS

... Bryan Cranston, much like Vince Gilligan, is keeping busy. He'll be reprising his role as Ted's former boss on How I Met Your Mother for one episode in the final season.

... HBO has finally given the go-ahead to Criminal Justice, a miniseries that James Gandolfini had been set to star in prior to his death. Robert De Niro will take over Gandolfini's role. Criminal Justice is about a New York attorney who's just a bit too ambitious in taking on a case involving a Pakistani accused of murder.

... The legendary Vanessa Redgrave has joined ABC's The Black Box, a new drama about a world-renowned neuroscientist played by Kelly Reilly who appears to have her crap together on the surface, but is struggling with a mental illness. Redgrave will play her psychiatrist.

... Martin Freeman, who you may recognize from the hit BBC series Sherlock, or from his roles in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and something called The Hobbit, has landed the lead role in FX's limited event series Fargo. He'll play Lester Nygaard, William H. Macy's character in the 1996 Coen brothers film of the same name. The series will feature an all new "true crime" case.

... Comedian and all-around awesome guy Patton Oswalt is following up appearances on Justified and Parks and Recreation with a guest-starring tole on FOX's Brooklyn Nine-Nine. He'll play a fire marshall who butts heads with Andy Samberg's Detective Peralta.

... Revenge has hired current Devious Maids star Ana Ortiz. She'll guest-star as Bizzy Preston, a public relations specialist hired by Conrad. This role should come as no surprise considering all the crap the Graysons have gone through in the public eye over the course of two seasons.

... Alanna Masterson is joining the cast of The Walking Dead for Season 4. Right now we don't know much about her character, but she'll recur this season, with an option to become a series regular in the future. She'll play a new survivor who first appears midway through the season.

... Loretta Devine has joined USA's new series Sirens. The series follows "three Chicago EMTs whose self-righteous and self-destructive personalities make them unfit for long-term relationships and most occupations. Devine will play the no-nonsense church-hugging mother of one of the characters, and will appear in two episodes.

... Bethany Joy Lenz of One Tree Hill (she played Haley) has landed the lead role in E!'s scripted series pilot Songbyrd. The drama follows a songwriter named Lauren Byrd (Lenz), who has a small group of employees who help her with her unusual songwriting process. And then there's love problems and all that, of course.  Rumer Willis has joined as the sister of Lauren.

... Kendra Wilkinson will appear on FOX's The Mindy Project this season because every single celebrity is legally required to guest-star on this show at some point. The former Playmate and Girls Next Door star won't be playing herself.

... Army Wives' Sally Pressman is dropping by Scandal for a few episodes this season. Her role is being kept under wraps because this is a Shona Rhime's show (that woman is so secretive), Look for her in November.

... D.B. Sweeney will appear on Two and a Half Men this season as the boyfriend of Courtney Thorne-Smith's character Lyndsey. He's only due on one episode as of now.

The Michael J. Fox Show : Michael J. Fox's new comedy show is a heartwarming family show

The Michael J. Fox Show Series Premiere Review: It's Okay to Laugh

 Michael J Fox has Parkinson's disease, he has been battling it for years while still making appearances on different shows (Boston Legal, The Good Wife, Scrubs, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Rescue Me). So when news came out about him headlining his own comedy show, and the show not shying away about the disease, my opinion was that the show might focus too much on the disease and not his talents.

But as seen in the pilot, this isn't a show about a man's struggle with Parkinson's disease. It's a show about a man who's trying to balance family, work, and the quirky cast of characters in his life, and that man just happens to have Parkinson's disease. And while it's certainly a decision-maker for him—the fear of his tremors on live television is what initially encouraged him to retire from being a news anchor—you can't really say that the show is about Parkinson's and its effect on a family. It's just about the family.

The storyworld surrounding Mike Henry is one of warmth and good intentions. People stop Mike on the street because they miss his presence on TV. They try to commune with him by recounting their tales of family members with degenerative disorders (even if they're not remotely related to Parkinson's). When his family sneakily convinced him to go back to work—because his idleness in retirement was driving them crazy, no less—the news stories were about things like budget misappropriation (and a fire). Thankfully, and this has to be by design, there is such a lack of pity from those closest to Mike that you start to not even notice it. Generally, people are behaving themselves and treating him like the person he is and not the disease he exhibits.

Beyond the unconventional lead character, the rest of the cast is basic sitcom fare. Betsy Brandt sheds the purple anxiety of (Marie Schrader in Breaking Bad) for Annie, a more self-assured and sarcastic better half to Mike. There's the college-aged son who's living at home (and trying to start his own search engine), a high-school age daughter blossoming into womanhood, and a precocious youngest son. Annie's best friend and aunt to the Henry children (Katie Finneran from Wonderfalls!) is your typical trainwreck type. And Mike's work family is just as warm (and typical of the family comedy genre), with Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Treme, Suits)as its centerpiece in the role of Harris, Mike's best friend and boss. The plot is standard sitcom fare. There's potential for growth in all these areas, but there are currently no surprises here. Although the story of Mike Henry making a comeback after taking a break from the spotlight is fitting.

And I don't say any of that in an effort to turn you off. Just because the show isn't an innovation doesn't mean it won't be sharply written or heartwarming or entertaining. Michael J. Fox is fun to watch, tremors and all. I'm glad to have him on my TV screen and, even if the plot doesn't focus on Mike Henry's Parkinson's, the show does offer a different perspective from the rest of TV. I'm looking forward to more.

Masters of Sex : new time piece drama about human sexuality

Masters of Sex, Showtime's new drama.

Set in the mid-1950s, Masters of Sex focuses on the work of Dr. William Masters, a regionally famous OB/GYN at Washington University in St. Louis who wants to research human sexuality. Masters meets quite a bit of resistance from the higher-ups at the hospital and university, leading to a whole lot of time spent in brothels, but he finds a willing assistant in former lounge singer and single mom Virginia Johnson. The two take on the project in secret, drumming up various personal frustrations along the way.

Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon, Twilight, 30 Rock, and a slew of other things) plays the brilliant and kinda curmudgeonly Masters, and the even lovelier Lizzy Caplan (Party Down, New Girl, True Blood) is the curious and sexually open Johnson. Beau Bridges toplines a recurring cast full of somewhat-recognizable people including Caitlin Fitzgerald, Nicholas D'Agosto, Teddy Sears, and Annaleigh Ashford. The show was created by Michelle Ashford, who previously worked on The Pacific and John Adams. It's based on Thomas Maier's biography of the lead characters, Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson.

The show debuts this Sunday, September 29 at 10pm on Showtime, right after the Season 3 premiere of Homeland, and at just about the same time as the final act of Breaking Bad.

Masters of Sex is mostly unlike the pay-cable, gritty, anti-hero stuff we've all grown accustomed to over the last decade-plus. You might think of making a Mad Men comparison because of the historical period, but Masters of Sex isn't as internal, or as bleak. And although it's from two character (Male and Female) points of view like many other shows we've seen recently (The Killing, The Americans, The Bridge, Broadchurch), there's no murder investigation. Masters of Sex won't feel unfamiliar to you, but it's not your typical cable drama.

The show isn't quite as interested in the meticulous period details that drive Mad Men, but it makes great use of the time period as far as cultural perceptions of sex and sexuality go. This is a premium-cable series about sex and sex research, so sure, there's a whole lot of nudity and plenty of amusing asides about the general prudishness of the time, but it never feels like those things are used egregiously. Because of their roles as researchers, Masters and Johnson often talk while other people are having sex, which is a fun spin on sexposition. But in general, Masters of Sex plays everything straight, from Masters' professional challenges to Johnson's personal ones, and to great effect.

It helps that the two leads are fantastic. Michael Sheen could've easily turned in an over-the-top, showy performance, but it's so much better to see him really dig into Masters' psyche to create a character that's taking on this big research project at least partially because he's as personally frustrated with sex as he is professionally confused. Lizzy Caplan more than holds her own as Virginia Johnson, a woman who has desires and dreams and who isn't really afraid to do whatever to achieve them. Together, she and Sheen have the type of great unresolved sexual tension that makes audiences go nuts.

Although the supporting cast is pretty strong, once the show starts following various characters outside of the study, it's simply not as compelling. Upcoming episodes suggest some lame stuff with Masters' family history, but the larger world is still solid. Other than that? Not a whole lot. I mean, unless you don't like watching people have simulated sex, or dildos with cameras on them. If that's the case, maybe this show isn't for you.

Masters of Sex is, without question, the best new series of the fall; it's not even close (sorry, Marvel fans). The show is smart, straightforward, well-acted, and very well-produced. And perhaps best of all, at least at this early stage, it has the confidence to just tell the stories it wants to tell, without piling on some of the more familiar ( tired) cable drama tropes.

Hello ladies : a charming new comedy about a man's desperation for a relationship

Hello Ladies! Wait, what's Hello Ladies?

Stephen Merchant, known to many as Ricky Gervais' tall sidekick, stars as Stuart in a role he was born to play. Nate Torrence (Mr. Sunshine) and Kevin Weisman (Alias) play Stuart's pals Wade and Kives, and Christine Woods (Go On) plays Stuart's friend/tenant Jessica. New SNL cast member Kyle Mooney makes a great appearance as Stuart's coworker. Merchant created the show with his buddies Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, but this series is really Merchant's baby. Really, it's everything you'd expect a show that stars Merchant as a horny single guy in Los Angeles to be.

Merchant is great, and he's not shy about playing the sorry sap and putting his character Stuart through all kinds of hilarious misadventures that only a desperate man can experience. However, his struggles are endearing, his desires feel real, and the short glimpses you'll see of him being alone will make you root for him. Also, it's really funny!

Here's Merchant opposite  Halle Berry in the movie, Movie 43; in one of the films numerous short stories.

It's the best new comedy of the season, and it's bound to be one of those sleeper HBO series that will make you super cool when you recommend it to your friends.

Revolution, Season 2 Premiere : this Show didn't evolve and move forward, it revolved on itself.

Revolution S02E01: "Born in the U.S.A."


   One of this season's most exciting new fall shows is Revolution, NBC's new drama about a world that's 15-and-a-half years removed from a worldwide blackout and six months removed from a domestic nuclear attack. Wait, what? Revolution is in its second season? Are you sure?  Season 1 of the NBC sci-fi series was dissed by creator Eric Kripke himself, and by May, the show had lost a large portion of its initial audience.

That's the mental approach show creator Eric Kripke hopes viewers will take going into Season 2, and really, it's the only way Revolution stands a chance at ever fulfilling the potential it had when it was but a wee logline gestating in Kripke's brain. At Comic-Con this past July, Kripke said that Season 1 was full of mistakes and crashed several times, rendering it barely able to crawl across the finish line. Electricity was too common in a world that wasn't supposed to have any, there were guns everywhere, and the light switch that powered everything was the only thing people talked about, which meant people talked about it way too much.

So what did Kripke do to kick off Season 2? He blew up the whole damn show. He nuked it—literally—by letting the bombs that were launched in the Season 1 finale fall on Atlanta and Philadelphia in the opening moments of Season 2. Season 1, you are dust. Let's pretend you never happened. Not only was it the right choice to make for this one-time hit, it helped the series experience its own... Revolution. Bam!

All that's left in the ruins of Season 1 is probably what the show should have been in the first place: bleak, filthy, and chaotic. Gone are the Disney overtones, the terrible dialogue, and the useless characters ; in their place are a new team of writers (Supernatural's Ben Edlund, Defiance's Rockne S. O'Bannon) and a new attitude. Revolution felt like a completely different show in "Born in the U.S.A." Maybe the episode should've been called "Reborn in the U.S.A.," because aside from the familiar faces, it was almost unrecognizable. And dammit, it was good. Well, compared to what we were used to.

We can see the effect of the destruction on all of the show's core characters, too. They all played a role in the obliteration of millions, and it's weighing them heavily, particularly with Rachel. And the nuclear hangover has carried over into the most important aspect of the show: its tone.

Let's briefly talk about what actually happened in the premiere. Miles, Rachel and Aaron were all hanging out in the fake town of Willoughby, Texas, feeling mostly miserable about vaporizing the East Coast. Rachel's dad was there, and he's a good addition to the group as a man who can lend more insight into the pre-blackout romantic entanglement of Miles and Rachel. The threat of well-organized militia armies has been replaced by the threat of savage, independently run war clans, bringing a Mad Max feel to the show, these guys aren't dopes like the hapless fools of the Monroe Militia. They hang people! They're actually scary! And they scooped up Miles (who goes by Stu now, btw) and friendly Sheriff Mason.

Aaron now has an interest in entomology because he witnessed a massive firefly fireworks show. He also talked about other critters acting odd, as though nature was ready to reclaim the planet from the human vermin that destroyed it. I seriously thought Aaron was a goner when he took a sabre to the chest and actually died at the end of the episode, but the final frame showed Aaron gasping and springing back to life. You got me, Revolution. But what does it mean? I guess that's what next week is for.

And how about the new Charlie? I'm kind of liking this version of her. She's sluttier, more driven, and badass than she was in Season 1. Based on the limited time we spent with her, she's already looking like a much more improved Charlie. Charlie stalked Monroe to New Vegas (helllllo, Fallout), where the latter was engaging in some bare-chested boxing for sport. The citizens of Under the Dome took an unbelievable eight days to start punching each other over resources, but here on Revolution it's been six months since the bombs dropped (plus an extra 15 years of no electricity before that), and all hope was lost five months and 30 days ago. What else is there to do? Charlie tried to kill Monroe to take him off her list, but before she could put an arrow through his skull, Monroe was whisked away by some unknowns.

Over in the Great Plains Nation, the Nevilles roamed around what looked like a campground for Bonnaroo in search of Tom's wife, but things were looking bleak. Tom was a broken man without a purpose until Secretary Justine Allerford, a representative of the U.S. government who was displaced by savages like President Kelly of the Georgia Federation and Monroe of the Monroe Militia showed up. They're back to reclaim the country and supposedly make it great again, but all I got from them was a nutjob Tea Party vibe. Tom did too, because he stopped trying to kill himself and figured that Randall was working with them, therefore they're responsible for his wife's death. "I am going to rip them apart from the inside until they are begging me to die."

The world is different, the characters are different, the writing is different. And that's the best news I have about Revolution. I'm not foolish enough to say that the show is back on track. One better episode doesn't erase the 22 hours of disappointment we trudged through last season. But given the circumstances, Revolution returned in the best way possible. We'll see if it can keep moving in the right direction.

Culled from TV.Com

Person of Interest Season 3 Premiere ......... Interest not piqued

 

Reese and Finch are back! And they're back rather... unspectacularly. Person of Interest returned for its third season with an episode that was as plain as can be, an odd way to kick off what should be a very important season for a series that last season propelled itself toward becoming one of TV's most-watched shows. As opposed to its transition from Season 1 to Season 2, the Season 3 premiere didn't have a big cliffhanger to work with, and seemed more resigned to just get right back to business rather than work on all that mythology that Season 2 had built up.

Perhaps Person of Interest wanted to ease viewers into the new partnership that's sure to irk some viewers, . Samantha Shaw is now a regular member of the crew, even though she's technically still a free agent. In fact, when the episode began, she was running her own assignment with Finch while Reese managed his own operation. From a pure adrenaline standpoint, this was cool stuff: Reese shot up the inside of a van full of kidnappers in Person of Interest's typical "show less and let our imaginations take care of the rest" fashion and Shaw rose up from a horse-and-buggy above an alarmed and undercover Fusco to lay waste to some mystery thugs in Central Park. All in a night's work of littering the streets of New York with dead or crippled bad guys! You'd think the authorities would be concerned about so much ongoing mayhem and carnage, but hey, that wouldn't be as fun.

The question heading into Season 2 wasn't whether seeing Shaw and Reese shoot up gangs of baddies would be awesome, because it always will be; it was whether adding Shaw to the team would disrupt Reese and Finch's chemistry and partnership, the backbone of Person of Interest. Yes, it's going shake things up a little. Too bad, because I adore Shaw. Who doesn't love a hottie who gets a boner over heavy-duty sniper rifles and eats steak that's impaled on a knife like it's cotton candy? Shaw's presence overshadowed Finch's during the episode's main mission, which isn't what we're used to, and it undermined the great brains-and-brawn and eye-in-the-sky-and-beef-on-the-groud dynamics that worked so well in Person of Interest's first two seasons.

I don't think this is a permanent problem. Person of Interest just needs to figure out how to use her better, and that starts with not taking responsibility and importance away from Finch. However, from the writers' point of view, they have a tall task ahead of them and establishing Shaw as a big part of the team is a number-one priority. I love Shaw and her personality, but her presence pushed Finch out of the way a bit, which also meant that The Machine slid back a bit more, too. Aside from compiling that video loop of Reese to fool some bad guys, Finch mostly played dispatcher. At least he got a Boilermaker at the end. But the less Finch we see, the worse off Person of Interest will be. That's a fact.

The biggest change for any character came with (Detective) Carter, who's been demoted all the way down to beat cop (she does look good in the NYPD blues, though!). Aesthetically it's a big change, but right now it appears that her new situation won't affect her relationship with Reese and Finch very much. In fact, if anything, she's more of a man on the inside who can move quietly behind the scenes. You know, like making information boards with the strings and pictures of criminals and old newspaper clippings in her closet so that she can take down HR. I'm cool with this; It also looks like Carter will be the big liaison between Elias and the group this season, as Reese and Finch are too busy to pay their old friend a visit in person.

The only element of the episode that touched on Person of Interest's fascinating mythology was the update on Root. She and her crazy eyes were locked in a loony bin because she says stuff like, "The truth is God is 11 years old and she was born in Manhattan. And she chose me." You and I know she's talking about The Machine, but to everyone else? Cuckoo! But unlike the other crazies in the psycho ward, her line of communication with God is getting her cold, hard facts. Like details exposing her psychiatrist as a pervert who frequents rub-and-tugs.


Culled from Tv.Com

Five Promising New Fall TV Shows

It's that time of year. The time when there are a whole bunch of new TV series debuting within just a few weeks of each other - far more than most people could possibly keep up with.

So what sticks out as being worth your time? I've listed five of the most promising new series below, based on what we've seen, heard and what we know so far. There are some shows that nearly made this list -- Sleepy Hollow, Trophy Wife and The Blacklist among them -- that show signs they could soon turn into something strong as well. And it's very possible a couple of shows with outright poor pilots could quickly turn themselves around, as has happened in the past; just as it's possible a show with a promising start could quickly falter. But right now, as the TV season begins, here's five to keep your eye on...

.... Brooklyn Nine-Nine

 

Premiered September 17th, Tuesday on FOX.

Parks and Recreation creator Michael Schur and his fellow Parks alum Dan Goor have a simple but highly effective scenario here, imprinting the style of comedy Schur honed on Parks and The Office onto a cop show. Andy Samberg and Andre Braugher are a great wacky guy/serious guy pairing, surrounded by a strong group of supporting characters. It's important to remember that neither The Office or Parks and Recreation started all that strong, taking several episodes to really find themselves. Brooklyn Nine-Nine is all the more impressive for feeling very solid in its premiere, indicating the show could quickly find itself among the best comedies on TV these days.
Available in Nigeria early Wednesday mornings.


.... Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

 Premieres September 24th, Tuesdays on ABC.

Look, everyone is going to at least give this one a shot. But the good news is, it's worth your time. Joss Whedon and Marvel already hit pay dirt (to say the least) with The Avengers, so the anticipation for this series -- the first show to tie into the Marvel cinematic universe -- is sky high. But take away the Marvel connection and you'd still have plenty of interest in this show simply because it's Whedon returning to the medium he's kicked so much ass in. The pilot is very fun and exciting, setting a great tone for what's to come.
 Available in Nigeria early Wednesday mornings.

.... Masters of Sex

Premieres September 29th, Sundays on Showtime.

Showtime takes a look at the real life story of Masters and Johnson, the research duo who would become pioneers in the field of sexual response and how the human body responds during intercourse. The eyebrow-raising scenario is added to by the period setting, as William H. Masters and Virginia E. Johnson face considerable obstacles looking into a subject matter that wasn't exactly widely discussed in the 1950s. Masters of Sex is clever, funny, and, yes, provocative, with Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan expertly portraying the way ahead of their time duo at the center of the story.
 Available in Nigeria early Monday mornings.

.... Almost Human

Premieres November 4th, Monday on FOX.

The pilot to this one is good, but not great, yet still, there's a lot to be hopeful about here, especially given Almost Human's pedigree. For those of us who loved Fringe, getting a new sci-fi show from J.J. Abrams and J.H. Wyman so soon after that show ended is something to be excited about, as is seeing Karl Urban (Star Trek, Dredd) take the lead in the series. Urban and Michael Ealy are a good pairing as a cop 35 years in the future and his android partner. And keep in mind, Fringe started out just okay too. All of which is to say, let's see where Almost Human takes us...
 Available in Nigeria early Tuesday mornings.

.... Mob City



Premieres December 4th, Wednesday on TNT.

This is the one show on this list that is listed completely due to expectations, since it hasn't been sent out to press yet. Frank Darabont returns to TV following his unceremonious departure from The Walking Dead, with the Shawshank Redemption/Green Mile director tackling cops and mobsters in 1940s-50s Los Angeles. A couple of The Walking Dead cast alum are along for the ride, including Jon Bernthal and Jeffrey DeMunn, plus folks like Neal McDonough (Justified), Robert Knepper (Prison Break) and Milo Ventimiglia (Heroes). It all sounds pretty damn cool, no? We'll have to wait until late this year to see for ourselves, but there's certainly a lot to have us intrigued...
Available in Nigeria early Thursdays mornings.

AMC, HBO and Showtime .......... Troubling times at Cable powerhouses

AMC vesus Showtime versus HBO

News Briefs fot the week : True Blood to end with next year's 7th season, LeBron James now delving into TV show productions..

....Well, guys, it's official. HBO has confirmed recent rumors that True Blood's seventh season, set to air next summer, will mark the show's True Death. The news shouldn't really come as a shock; the clock has been ticking on Bon Temps for quite some time.

News briefs : HBO sets premiere date for new detective murder miniseries

NEWS THIS WEEK

... With Burn Notice nearing the end of its seven-season run on USA (the series finale airs Thursday, September 12), creator Matt Nix is turning his attention to a new drama. His next project, Complications — about an ER doctor who is changed after being involved in a gang shooting—is nearing a pilot order at USA.

Broadchurch : A murder mystery drama that puts aside the mystery and gives you drama which pulls you in

I want to talk about a new show i just watched, only 8 episodes in the first season, just watched all episodes in 2 days, and it is riveting! It is one murder and it stirres up a whole town, in which everyone seems to have secrets and problems... welcome to Broadchurch.

Broadchurch : Show synopsis
David Tennant ( The 10th Doctor Who) and Olivia Colman lead the cast in this powerful new detective series. A small community in Dorset is rocked by the death of local boy Danny Latimer. D.I. Alec Hardy (Tennant) a weird out-of-town detective with a checkered past, is drafted in to head up the investigation instead of local officer DS Ellie Miller (Colman).
As the investigation proceeds, the lives of the locals - from the Latimer family, to priest Paul Coates and mysterious Susan Wright are explored as they deal with the life changing events.

Series News : A&E renews Longmire but cancels The Glades, Joshua Jackson returns to TV drama

...  A&E to renew Longmire. A&E has not confirmed the renewal, but Longmire the network's most-watched show has supposedly been renewed, and it's only a matter of time until the A&E makes it official. Following strong Season 2 finale, word is out that the network liked what it saw and wants the drama to come back for more.

The drama stars Robert Taylor as Sheriff Walt Longmire, a Montana lawman who returns to work after the death of his wife. Katee Sackhoff, Bailey Chase, and Lou Diamond Phillips also star in the series. Longmire is a good procedural show about a redneck sheriff in a small town, who rather than use technology to solve his cases, uses his wits and old school and sometimes cowboy tricks to solve cases.

Series News : 'Phoebe' joining Scandal, more love interest for Mindy and John Noble returns from the dead in The Good Wife, again!

... Lisa Kudrow has joined ABC's Scandal in a recurring capacity for Season 3. The Friends star will play ... well, we don't know because Shonda Rhimes doesn't want us to know. But we can tell you that she's going to be a politician.

... J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan (the executive producers of Person of Interest) are developing Michael Crichton’s cult film Westworld for HBO. Westworld was a 1973 film about an android in a futuristic Western-themed amusement park.

Orange Is The New Black : A New Women prison Series

Orange Is the New Black is an American comedy-drama series,created by Jenji Kohan, which is based on "Orange Is the New Black" by Piper Kerman, a memoir about her own experiences in prison. Orange Is the New Black stars Taylor Schilling as Piper Chapman,  a woman in her thirties who is sentenced to 15 months in prison after she is convicted of a decade old crime of transporting money for her drug dealing girlfriend (Laura Prepon). The series also stars Laura Prepon as Alex Vause, a drug dealer and Piper's former lover; Michael J. Harney as prison counselor Sam Healy; Michelle Hurst as Miss Claudette, a fellow inmate; Kate Mulgrew as the inmate cook "Red," and Jason Biggs as Piper's fiancé Larry Bloom.

Why Disney's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." Could Be Bigger Than "The Avengers"

Get ready, comic book fans!

Disney's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premieres on Sept. 24, in America to much fanfare on the company's ABC network.