I liked the one ep I've been able to see. Martin (taking every opportunity to SPIT in Comcrap's direction)
---------[ Received Mail Content ]---------- Subject : RE: [scifinoir2] How Did The Fall Scifi TV Shows Fare? Date : Wed, 29 Oct 2008 16:09:55 -0700 From : "Tracey de Morsella" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To : <scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com> Speaking of BBC, what do you think of Primeval? From: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Daryle Lockhart Sent: Wednesday, October 29, 2008 6:31 AM To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] How Did The Fall Scifi TV Shows Fare? What in the world is "The Ex List"? I watched The Mentalist last night online. I like it! It's a nice fill-in for "Monk". I decided that I like the geeky CBS shows (Numbers, Criminal Minds, CSI, etc), so Mentalist will remain in my Hulu (excuse me, my CBS online) queue. But as for the rest of these new shows...I doubt that I will watch them at all. I give shows the same chance give music today -- if you don't get me in the first few bars, I'm out. I will watch the BBC originals when they air. I don't think I'm alone in discovering old shows and watching them in completion for the first time. I think most people hate new TV. I'm also the crazy guy who thinks this is an opportunity for Sci-Fi. Grant Morrison recently said that now is a god time for comic writers to go nuts...and I totally agree. I think that independent online media, indie comics, and good ol' fashioned books are about to be the new underground. I think network TV has decided to take it entirely too safe, which is probably why the CBS shows are working for me. If I'm gonna go with safe, ya gotta go with the KINGS of safe. I vote no confidence in Network TV programming. On Oct 29, 2008, at 9:09 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Well, you know that I already lambasted "Knight Rider", so am surprised it did well enough to be picked up. ( I swear the original was better). "Valentine" was on my hit list too, not at all surprised it's tanking. I haven't watched "The Mentalist" yet; guess I kept thinking of it as a serious version of "Psych". But i've heard good things so will check it out if I get time. I'm surprised "Eleventh Hour" is doing as well. It's really just another procedural show with a mystery to solve, and starring a quirky lead doctor/scientist. It's like "House" on the road, or, a more grounded version of the out there science on "Fringe", another solve-the-problem-of-the-week show with a quirky lead. "Eleventh Hour" is okay, but not a must see. I record it and watch "Life on Mars" instead. "Life on Mars" is at least entertaining so far. Not sure where it'll go. It's the kind of show that to me would realistically only stay fresh for one, possibly two, seasons. It has good actors, a good look, and actually decent plots. I'd give it a solid "B", not sure where in the world they came up with a "D" rating. Ditto for "My Own Worst Enemy". If I can quit worrying about the *why* of creating this split personality (for security I guess, but it's still a stretch), I can enjoy Slater as an actor. Still, you wonder who long the theme of each side recording messages to update the other side can last. A "B-" to me right now, again, due to good actors and at least interesting plots. But an "F"--what's the criterion this lady's using, her own tastes, or simply rating based on viewership? -------------- Original message -------------- From: "Tracey de Morsella" How Did The Fall TV Shows Fare? As the fall TV season hits its stride, the winners and losers have emerged, and it's a bloodbath out there. Ratings in general are horrible, and the major networks are still reeling from last year's writers' strike and a splintered viewership. Three series have already been pulled from the airwaves, including CBS' The Ex List. Herewith, the first of two SCI FI Wire assessments of how new and returning SF&F shows made the grade, in descending order. Today, we look at the new shows. Tomorrow, returning series. (In the past if a TV series was on one of the four big broadcast networks, it needed to bring in 10 million viewers or so to prove it was worthy. For The CW, the number was lower, and 3 million viewers did the trick. Oh, how things have changed!) The Mentalist (CBS) Premiered with 15.55 million viewers. Last week, 15.29 million viewers /I>. OK, he's a fake psychic, and it's not really science fiction, but we'll claim any show that does this well. It's the only certified hit for the new season, drawing great numbers against Fox's Fringe. Beyond that, it manages to keep 90 percent of its viewers from lead-in NCIS. That sounds like a match made in TV heaven. Grade: A+ Sanctuary (SCI FI) Premiered with 3 million viewers. Television's first mostly virtual series kicked off great, and it looks like a worthy successor to exiting SCI FI Friday shows Stargate Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica . Grade: A Eleventh Hour (CBS) Premiered with 11.59 million viewers. Last week, 12.16 million viewers. Not a hit, this show can't keep up with its lead-in C.S.I.'s big numbers. But it has built its audience and consistently does well against NBC'sER and ABC's Life on Mars. Whether or not the series will stay on Thursdays or be swapped with Tuesday's Without A Trace remains to be seen, but in this ratings environment those numbers look good. Grade: B+ Fringe (Fox) Premiered with 9 million viewers. Last week, 9.11 million viewers. This show had the most hype heading into the fall season, so the ratings have been a bit of a disappointment. Still, considering the implosion ofTerminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and some of Fox's other shows, 9 million+ viewers seems pretty good. Grade: B Knight Rider (NBC) Premiered with 7.3 million viewers. Last week, 7.23 million viewers. This lightweight show with apparent lightweight ratings wouldn't seem to be a keeper for NBC. But Knight Rider appeals strongly to the young male vie wer, and that was good enough for a full-season pickup. Grade: C (NBC is owned by NBC Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.) Life on Mars (ABC) Premiered with 11.6 million viewers. Last week, 8.06 million viewers. This British transplant got a strong sampling when it premiered and managed to beat out CBS' Eleventh Hour in a head-to-head ratings smackdown. Since then, it's been losing viewers each week, which is always a bad sign. Between Eli Stone on Tuesdays, Dirty Sexy Money on Wednesdays and Life on Mars on Thursdays, ABC is having a tough time in the 10 p.m. hour. Grade: D My Own Worst Enemy (NBC) Premiered with 7.27 million viewers. Last week, 5.72 million viewers. Another troubled show, My Own Worst Enemydidn't appeal to viewers from the beginning, despite heavy promotion. Part of the problem has to do with lead-in Heroes' anemic numbers this season, butEnemy loses viewers by the half-hour mark, and that's a bad, bad sign. It's possible NBC will try Enemy in another slot and bring its reliable Medium, which is waiting in the wings, back where it belongs on Mondays. Grade: D-Valentine (The CW) Premiered with 1.1 million viewers. Last week, 846,000 viewers. The CW took a risk by turning over its Sunday nights to Media Rights Capital, which produced three new series. Unfortunately, the experiment failed, and the shows tanked across the board. Production was "temporarily" halted on Valentine after finishing eight episodes. Media Rights Capital promises to continue production and finish its 13-episode order, but considering it can't even crack a million viewers, the Greek Gods themselves would be challenged to save this one. Grade: F The Ex List (CBS) Premiered with 6.85 million viewers. Last week, 5.65 million viewers. While Ghost Whisperer has been doing well on Fridays, the younger-skewing Ex List has proved a poor companion. CBS just pulled the series off the air, with six episodes still in the can. A repeat of NCIS will take its place. No word from CBS whether the series will be canceled or tried out in another timeslot. Grade: F That's not all folks! There are more new series headed our way in the coming months, including the syndicated Legend of the Seeker, which premieres this Saturday, and Joss Whedon's highly anticipated Dollhouse, set for Fox early next year. Stay tuned! --Kathie Huddleston http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=61810