Welcome to the fall TV season. Having fun yet? It's been six weeks since the fall campaign got underway and there has yet to be an honest to goodness breakout star. What do you think? Are you hooked on Private Practice, the Grey's Anatomy spinoff? What about the fantasy drama Pushing Daisies? Too whimsical for you?
Heroes is back (save the cheerleader, save the fall season?) to chronicle the ongoing comic-book story of an ever-growing list of super-powered characters. Some newcomers that have gained some positive reviews include Gossip Girl, Dirty Sexy Money, and the Kelsey Grammer vehicle Back to You.
A writer's strike that could shut down production of all scripted shows looms. That almost makes one pine for original episodes of the new series Caveman, a sitcom about two Cro-Magnons inspired by a car insurance commercial. Then again, if that is the best the writers' can come up with, perhaps a strike may not be so bad.
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Sasha Nagy, globeandmail.com: Hi Andrew: Thanks for giving Globe readers the lowdown on the fall TV season. I, for one, have become a bit blasé about prime-time fare, becoming more reliant on cable offerings (where would I be without Dexter and Californication?) In fact, it has spoiled me somewhat. I find Dirty Sexy Money, neither dirty nor sexy enough, for example! To my question… Who are the winners and losers so far this fall television season?
Andrew Ryan: Thanks for having me, Sasha. The fall TV season is only six weeks old but trends are already emerging. The big news so far is no news: There isn't a single breakout hit among the new fall network programs, I'm sorry to report. By this time last year, viewers were already flocking to hot new shows like Heroes and Ugly Betty. After roughly six weeks, not one new show has jumped out of the pack to challenge any of the existing network fare. The only show to come close is Private Practice, a spinoff of the hit medical drama Grey's Anatomy, and that's only a mediocre hit that has barely edged into the top 20 shows in Canada and the U.S. The erosion of primetime appears ongoing.
Matt G from Toronto writes: I believe sometimes that the critics are a bit behind the curve when it comes to shows. It seems there is a bit more applause for Friday Night Lights this year than last, and hopefully not too late. What do you make of this excellent show's chances of surviving a second season?
Andrew Ryan: Unfortunately, the broadcast curve is often unkind to a show like Friday Night Lights. The show was probably the most beloved show of last season by television critics, which meant no one watched, naturally. Friday Night Lights numbers are up slightly this season, but it's still not the kind of show likely to garner a mainstream viewing audience, now or ever. (Try naming another football-themed drama on television). It's even more unlikely NBC has a long-term gameplan for Friday Night Lights; hour-long drama is just too expensive to produce these days and the network always has cheaper programming in the wings (read: reality shows).
Don Genova from Vancouver (although in Italy right now!) writes: I was wondering what the typical turnaround time is for series episodes? I was amazed to see scenes I saw being shot at UBC for Bionic Woman turn up in an episode just a couple of weeks after the shoot. Also, if they have scripts in the can, what about re-writes needed during shooting? Can they do those without the writers, or would a strike prevent already-written scripts from being produced? Thanks.
