Category Archives: The CW

May 27, 2007 · 8:45 am

The Results are In: Nielsen Ratings Data for 2006/2007 Season

This list is long. This list is extensive. And I really want to know what this list means. Nielsen (Via The Hollywood Reporter) has released their data for every single TV show that aired in America this past season. It tells us where our favourite shows ranked, where much maligned shows ranked, and how scripted drama did against reality programming.And, it raises a lot of questions about this data that I think Nielsen might not want to answer.

For instance, does this list include repeats in its viewers averages? Because that’s the only way CSI (#4) should be beating Grey’s Anatomy (#6) in total viewers by my calculations. If so, this gives a distinct advantage to shows without repeats (Reality Shows, Lost, Heroes, etc.) or those shows which repeat extremely well (House, CSIs, etc.)

The major thing to watch for in the list is the difference between 18-49 numbers and viewership rankings. It rises many shows into positions of being picked up, even with lacklustre performances in viewers. Some show, like 30 Rock, are in the doldrums in terms of total viewers but shoot up into the Top 75 with adults 18-49, which got it renewed for a second season.

After a few formatting errors, I’ve realized that getting it to highlight canceled shows would drive me crazy, so just refer to your memory. And, either way, some will seem a bit strange. However, remember that these are averages, and don’t reflect ratings dropoff in their later episodes.

This is the case for Jericho, which clearly performed better than many canceled shows. However, CBS did cancel the better rated Close to Home airing on Fridays, so it’s not as if Jericho was the only victim of CBS’ extremely highly place high bar. It might as well be a pole vault at this point.

With the 2006/2007 season over, the industry trades are going right for ratings as their barometer of success. Outside of this post, I’m unlikely to do so as I go into my own year in review season. For now, check out the ratings for all of the dirt, and stay tuned for less quantitative analysis at Cultural Learnings.

Reviewing the Series Finale: ‘Veronica Mars’ Walks Away Under Stormy Skies

When Gilmore Girls ended its run last week, it was supposed to be an unsatisfying end to a series that had been stagnating for the previous year. It was supposed to be an unplanned, thrown together finale that failed to address the show’s main issues. And, somehow, it managed to be just about as good as it could have been considering the circumstances. It is therefore unfortunate that I can’t say the same for Veronica Mars’ solution to a similar circumstance. While these two episodes combined represent perhaps the best the show has managed all season, the conflict and issues presented were not that of resolution but of upheaval. We left our heroine walking through the rain to the melancholy tones of “It Never Rains in Southern California.” In her there is sadness, frustration, guilt…but there is no happiness. There is no finale. I said earlier today that I was all set to say goodbye to Veronica Mars…but I take it all back. I’m not ready at all.

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Tagged as Reviewing the Finales

May 22, 2007 · 8:57 am

The End of Veronica Mars: Looking Back Before the Series Finale

I started watching Veronica Mars after hearing good things about it, and after about five episodes had already aired. I watched those episodes out of order, and yet I couldn’t help but be sucked in. The show stands as perhaps the most compelling young drama to emerge since Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and stands as a testament to strong dramatic television. And yet, as is becoming more and more common these days, the show will not be remembered for its pedigree or quality in the annals of television history. Instead of awards and accolades for its stars and creators, Veronica Mars will be remembered as a show that never found an audience even through changes to its cast, its structure, its timeslot and even its network. And that is the real tragedy, because the end of Veronica Mars should be a celebration of its quality, not a lament for its failure.

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Tagged as Series Finale

May 21, 2007 · 12:39 pm

The Three Timeslots to Watch on the 2007/2008 Fall Schedule

In a final word on the 2007/2008 Upfronts, I figure it’s time we returned to the schedule as a whole. Because, let’s face it, some of us watch a lot of TV. And, sometimes, that TV all falls within the exact same timeslot. As more and more shows emerge as fan favourites, more and more conflicts take place. This year’s Fall Schedule has created many of these conflicts, and some of them are sure to be key ratings battlegrounds in the year to come. Which five, however, will prove the most interesting? And, as a result, which ones will be a nightmare for non-TiVo owners across North America? Well, there’s only one way to find out.

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The Three Most Disturbing Trends of the 2007/2008 Upfronts

Each year, the Upfronts create a series of trends which show what the networks are really thinking for the following year. They take what was successful the year before, and they decide that they should just copy all of that into their own schedules. For example, Lost’s success led to three different sci-fi copycat shows the following season: Invasion (ABC), Surface (NBC), and Threshold (CBS). Similarly, after the success of Prison Break, networks switched to serial conspiracy/action dramas like Vanished (FOX), Kidnapped (NBC), and Smith (CBS). This season has seen a variety of different trends, and some of them actually seem quite good on the surface. However, I think that there is actually a number of bad precedents being set which we should all remain aware of as next season begins.

The Three Most Disturbing Trends of the 2007/2008 Upfronts

3. The Procedural Nature of Television Drama

I’ve expected it from CBS for many years, now: all of their dramas are unlikely to have any sort of serial aspect, choosing instead to stick to procedural structure. Law & Order really started it off, CSI picked up the ball and kept running, and there is surely to be a new franchise waiting in the wings with time. It’s a quality which the networks love, since it means people can just sit back and watch a single episode without getting too caught up in the previous week’s action. And, I like some of these dramas: they can be compelling and fun to watch, and they repeat well for the purpose of syndication. However, I don’t want to see all procedural and nothing but procedural dramas.

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Filed under ABC, American Idol, FOX, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, House, My Name is Earl, NBC, New Amsterdam, Private Practice, Reality TV, Sarah Connor Chronicles, Survivor, Television, The Amazing Race, The Apprentice, The CW, The Office, Upfronts, Veronica Mars

Tagged as CBS

May 19, 2007 · 9:38 am

The Top Five 2007/2008 Pilots Likely to be Yanked From the Air Prematurely

Let’s face it, being ordered to series isn’t even half the battle for a new pilot. The network is not always a good barometer of one’s success, and it is the viewing public who will make or break the future of a pilot. Now, they’re also a fickle sort, but based on this year’s pilots I think we can at least try to guess how the public might react. And thus, as part of the Network Upfronts Extravaganza, I present…

The Top Five 2007/2008 Pilots Likely to be Yanked From the Air Prematurely

5. Pushing Daisies [ABC]

This show will be finding its way onto another list sometime this weekend, but for now it’s also a show which is extremely likely to be yanked from the air prematurely. The show has a whole lot of potential, but if my brother’s initial reaction to it says anything it will have a tough time with the casual crowd. He read the synopsis of the show and was immediately appalled by it. That synopsis:

…an unprecedented blend of romance, crime procedural and high-concept fantasy in a forensic fairytale about a young man with a very special gift. Once upon a time, a mild-mannered boy named Ned realized he could touch dead things and bring them back to life.

Now, after watching the preview, he and I both agree that the show has a whole lot of potential and could be some quirky fun. However, not very many people take the time to really get into it, and I think that many will react as he did As a result, the show’s rather alarming first impression is likely to make it tough for the drama to find an audience. Which, ABC might take as a sign to exit the drama stage left and move a midseason drama in early.

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Filed under 'Til Death, 7th Heaven, ABC, FOX, Ratings, Television, The CW, Upfronts

Tagged as CBS

May 18, 2007 · 11:11 am

The Five Biggest Mistakes of the 2007 Network Upfronts

There is no question that the Upfronts bring on a lot of good things, which I will get to in time. However, it’s tough directly after the release of all of the fall schedules to not dwell on the negatives. The show which we canceled, the shows that were mistreated, and the show that you cringe just thinking about. As a result, we start our weekend coverage of the Upfronts with a piece which covers the mistakes made, and which ones will have the most negative effect on the state of television.

The Five Biggest Mistakes of the 2007 Network Upfronts

5. CBS cancels ‘Jericho’

I’ve talked about why canceling Jericho was the right move in the end, but I think it still needs to be recognized that CBS might need to reconsider such moves in the future. Wonky scheduling killed the show’s audience, not necessarily its quality, and I think this is where CBS might have hit their final straw. I think that CBS is worried about the bottom line, and the ratings performance, and I kind of wonder whether they really watched the show to see. Jericho’s fanbase was rabid and of a different sort than most of their shows. The network was able to cancel shows in the past without fanfare (Where’s the outrage for Close to Home?) because they are casual viewers: Jericho didn’t have any of those, and canceling it is likely to end up being more than they bargained for.

It had to be done, but it’s certainly put them in a lesser eye with some of the people that they hope might turn up this season for Moonlight and Viva Laughlin, two shows which might need a touch of their fandom. If they ever want to branch into serial television for real, they will need to realize that quality does matter. We’ll see if their tone changes as time moves forward.

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Filed under 'Til Death, ABC, Cavemen, FOX, Friday Night Lights, House, Jericho, NBC, New Amsterdam, Ratings, Television, The CW, Upfronts, Veronica Mars

Tagged as CBS

May 18, 2007 · 8:46 am

Network Upfronts Extravaganza: 2007/2008 Schedule Wrapup

The Network Upfronts have officially come to an end…well, for the big five anyways, as smaller networks are delivering upfront presentations throughout the day. Still, for all intensive purposes, the 2007/2008 Fall Schedule is officially in place.

Over the weekend, I want to run down some lists of what went down during the week, and what it means for our future TV viewing. These lists will be varied, and hopefully cover a wide range of information. Upfronts are a rather huge event, and the result has been a lot of news, views and previews overloading the senses. I’m hoping that in this post-upfront haze that we can sort it all out.

The lists will begin later today with “The Top 5 Mistakes Made During the 2007 Network Upfronts”, but for now I figure I’d put all the news in one place. So, without further adieu, here is your Network Upfronts Extravaganza 2007 Wrapup.

NBC

NBC 2007/2008 Fall Schedule

NBC Fall Preview [NBC.com]

New Shows

Life

The Bionic Woman

Journeyman

Chuck

The IT Crowd [Midseason]

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Network Upfronts Extravaganza – ‘Veronica Mars’ Canceled [For Real]

Well folks, we all knew this day would come. Final word out of New York, from The CW’s own Dawn Ostroff has basically confirmed it: Veronica Mars has (finally) been canceled.

From Michael Ausiello at TV Guide.com:

12;29 OK, here it is in a nutshell, per dawn ostroff. Veronica Mars is dead. But, and there is a but, she says she’s “talking to Rob and Kristen” about doing something else. She’s not calling it a spin-off, and wouldn’t say whether it would feature the character of Veronica. Translation; I’m as confused as ever!

12:33 I will try and get more clarification on this. Please stand by…

12:36 OK, a reporter just asked a VM follow-up — and Dawn continues to dodge. She says they’re discussing “an idea,” but adds, “I don’t think it’s going to happen.”

12;47 The press conference is over. I tackle dawn just as she tries to escape and I ask her to level with me. Is Veronica dead? “Veronica Mars is over, but we’re talking about something else. I don’t know if it’s going to be anything. I’m being honest with you. It could come back in some form, but I don’t know what form that would be.” She confirmed that the deadline to make a decision is “somewhere around” the June 15 date i referred to previously. Long story short: mystery still not solved!

And then, the heartbreaking conclusion, from creator Rob Thomas himself…

“No one has talked to me about a new, non-Veronica project. All my writer’s have been offered jobs elsewhere, and I believe they will now all accept these jobs. Very, very, very sad day around the VM offices.

I assume that anything Dawn would be talking about in the realm of a Rob-Kristen project would involve a new from-scratch pilot as they don’t have me in a deal, and they’ll lose Kristen in a couple of weeks.”

Bottom line: It’s over.

I think we all saw this coming, perhaps, but it will take a while for it to sink in. I’ll have my final thoughts on the series’ three-season run ahead of its Series Finale on Tuesday. Until then, let’s have a moment of silence.

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Filed under Television, The CW, Upfronts, Veronica Mars

May 17, 2007 · 11:03 am

Network Upfronts Extravaganza – ‘The CW’ Announces 2007/2008 Fall Schedule

It’s official: via Variety, The CW announces its full 2007/2008 Fall Schedule. It’s not overly risky, really, but it’s got some potential. What is the fate of your favourite shows like Supernatural, Veronica Mars, One Tree Hill or newcomers like Gossip Girl and Reaper? Read on to find out.