by kellie abrahamson kabrahamson1@aol.com
Finally, the TV gods are smiling on us once more. The WGA and AMPTA have come to an agreement after three months of bitter negotiations. The end of the strike came just in time too. We got a chance to see No Country for Old Men take home some well-deserved Oscars live instead of having to sit through a lame, over-blown “press conference.” Network upfronts will, for the most part, still happen in May, which means we’ll have a 2008-2009 television season after all. Last and most importantly for any TV fan, many of our favorite shows are back in production. The question now is when those shows will be gracing our living rooms once more.
ABC’s near-future schedule is looking pretty bright. Pre-strike episodes of October Road and Lost are currently airing and Men in Trees began its abbreviated 11-episode season on February 27th. But April is where the magic really happens. Samantha Who? comes back on April 7th and Boston Legal is right behind her on the 8th. Those wacky Desperate Housewives will be back on April 13th and the Walkers put the “fun” in “dysfunction” on April 20th with 4 new episodes of Brothers & Sisters. Finally, April 24th will bring both Ugly Betty and the hot docs of Grey’s Anatomy back to primetime.
Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money and Private Practice have all proven to be huge hits in ABC’s ratings, so they’ve all been renewed for second seasons. The bad news is we won’t get to see any new episodes, even those that were completed pre-strike, until fall.
Finally, the Alphabet Net is cutting freshman “Men and the City” series Big Shots for performing below expectations, Cavemen for being just as bad as we thought it would be and Carpoolers for its glaring mediocrity. Women’s Murder Club will most likely finish up its first season in April or May, but the future is looking grim for these investigators.
There’s plenty going on over at CBS this spring. Sitcoms The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, and Two and a Half Men will be back on March 17th to finish up their seasons, joining the already airing The New Adventures of Old Christine. Also returning is couples comedy Rules of Engagement on April 14th. Jericho is already showing off its second season. More dramas will join it on CBS’s airwaves beginning March 30th with Cold Case. Criminal Minds (April 2), Without a Trace (April 3), NUMB3RS (April 4), Ghost Whisperer (April 4), NCIS (April 8) and Moonlight (April 11) will also come back. The CSIs are also set to air new episodes this spring.
The Eye is cutting two of its 2007-2008 season shows for good- Cuban soap Cane and the downright dreadful Viva Laughlin, which couldn’t survive past two episodes last fall.
CW sitcoms Aliens in America and Everybody Hates Chris will begin airing new episodes in March and The Game will also come back for more at some point this spring. Teen angst will continue as well, with new chapters of Gossip Girl set to air on April 21st. One Tree Hill has a handful of episodes slated to air through March 18th. More new episodes of the soap will be shot and will begin airing on April 14th. March and April will also bring some otherworldly flavor back to The CW with the returns of Smallville, Supernatural and Reaper.
The C-Dub has already shaved some fat from their roster by signaling the end of the long-running sitcom Girlfriends. They’re also canning the cringe-worthy Life is Wild due to predictable lack of interest.
Aside from a handful of episodes remaining for Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Fox is unveiling most of their returning series’ in April. Sitcoms ‘Til Death and Back to You will see new chapters on March 25th and April 14th, respectively. Forensics drama Bones comes back with 6 consecutive episodes beginning on April 14th. Finally, everyone’s favorite drug-addicted doctor House begins his rounds in a new Monday timeslot on April 28th.
On a side note, Poor Jack Bauer has yet to fight any terrorists this year and it looks like it’s gonna stay that way. Fox’s hit series 24 is being postponed until January ’09.
After a very long, almost torturous break, NBC’s comedies are all coming back this spring with new episodes. My Name is Earl kicks things off on April 3rd while 30 Rock and The Office bring the funny on April 10th. Also appearing on the 10th is ER. All of the Law & Orders are expected to shoot some new episodes that will begin airing this spring, and Medium, which has five pre-strike episodes already in the can, will continue to shoot to give us a full season by summer.
NBC has given the second season green light to newbies Chuck and Life. New episodes of those shows will air in the fall. In a similar situation is Heroes, which will leave us high and dry until the start of the 2008-2009 season. To make it up to us, the network is promising a super-sized third season, with more than 22 episodes slated to air.
The bad news is several of the Peacock’s shows are on the chopping block since the strike ended. Bionic Woman proved to be a bust, as did the time-jumping Journeyman. Las Vegas is signing-off after four seasons. Then there’s the most disappointing of all- critical darling and cult sensation (code for rabid fans but poor ratings) Friday Night Lights. Start campaigning now if you don’t want to see the lights go out. Last and certainly not least, Scrubs is set to wrap up its seven-year run this spring. There are five pre-strike episodes ready to air and up to four episodes will be shot to give JD and the gang a proper send off.
You’ll have to check listings on a regular basis to know when these shows will be shown.
Article Published in the 03-08 Issue of EU Jacksonville
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