While we’re nowhere near the new fall season and most pilots have yet to be filmed, the networks are already looking at their current lineup to see where they can trim the fat. While most decisions have to be finalized, people talk, news is announced and assumptions can be made.

Some shows are no-brainers to renew (House), while others have already been canceled… and then there are the shows that sit on the fence; ones that are referred to in the industry as “being on the bubble.” Today we have an update on the status of some of those “bubble” shows.

With such a long list of shows, let’s stop with all the small-talk and get right to it. What’s the fate of your favorite show?

ABC

FlashForward
Chance of returning: 40%

• With more than 12 million viewers tuning it for the series premiere, one would have thought that it was a shoe-in for a second season. After a massive ratings loss, an extended hiatus, the loss of numerous showrunners and a convoluted plot I’m sure you can guess what’s going to happen to this series. While there’s a chance that ABC could bring this freshman drama back next season, don’t get your hopes up.

V
Chance of returning: 60%

• Even though there was a huge ratings drop after the first episode, V still remains a viable option for the network and one that they are interested in pursuing. Unless they receive a slew of amazing pilots this summer, expect The Visitors to return for at least one more season.

___________________

CBS

Numb3rs
Chance of returning: 20%

• Oh, my favorite mathematical crime drama. Even though CBS triumphs on Friday nights viewership is down, which makes it harder to continue footing the bill for long-running series. Calculate in the fact that the episode order for Numb3rs was reduced by six and that star David Krumholtz has signed on for a new pilot and sadly this equation doesn’t look good.

___________________

The CW

Smallville
Chance of returning: 85%

• After nine years, The CW tried to dump this superhero show into a Friday timeslot to die. Too bad that nobody told the fans. With this season bringing in the ratings and a two-hour television movie event, not even Kryptonite can bring Smallville down.

Supernatural
Chance of returning: 85%

• The only thing that’s going to stop the Winchester brothers from coming back will be creator Eric Kripke. With season 5 marking the end of the planned storyline, the future of the show remains uncertain. Still, I’d be willing to bet that they’ll be back for at least a couple more seasons. Especially if The CW has anything to say about it.

___________________

NBC

Chuck
Chance of returning: 75%

• C’mon… you knew that Chuck just had to be on this list. Last year seems so long ago. All that subway and “Save Chuck.” Well, fans of the show can rest easy as your favorite spy series has recently become one of NBC’s highest-rated shows on Monday nights. See you next fall, Mr. Bartowski.

Community
Chance of returning: 90%

• Hot in the ratings this show is not. Still, NBC loves their Thursday night comedy block and has already picked up Parks & Recreation for another season and that show gets lower ratings than Community.

Friday Night Lights
Chance of returning: 5%

• The producers have already announced the end. Luckily, the show has been renewed for one final season.

Heroes
Chance of returning: 60%

• Even though the superhero drama performs well overseas, on DVD and on the web, NBC can’t have such an expensive primetime series pulling in 4.4 million viewers for its season finale, as first-run broadcasts are where they make most of their money. With ratings declining rapidly and fans becoming fed up, one could understand if the show didn’t come back next year. Still, don’t be surprised if NBC picks up the series for a final 12 episodes. Enough time to wrap everything up nicely – hopefully.

Mercy
Chance of returning: 25%

• Do I really need to write something? The only reason why this show continues to be on the air is because NBC canceled so many of their series that there wasn’t anything to replace it with. Oh, and then there was that whole Jay/Conan mess to deal with.

Trauma
Chance of returning: 15%

• This show has had almost as many chances as Heroes to perform, but has yet to prove itself. It’ll get another chance next month when it returns with Chuck as its lead-in, but unless everyone in the world tunes in to watch it, this show is a goner.

___________________

FOX

24
Chance of returning: 40%

• Even in its eighth season 24 continues to bring in an audience. Still, the production budget for this show is too high and with few networks looking to pick it up in syndication, Fox is trying to find another option — hence the news of a 24 movie. There’s also the option of moving the series to another network, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Fringe
Chance of returning: 90%

• Even though this series has had a rough second season, the combination of Fringe and Bones have made Fox a contender in one of the most competitive nights of television. Expect to see more of Peter, Olivia and Walter this fall.

Human Target
Chance of returning: 55%

• Even though this comic book-based drama had trouble finding an audience, things picked up this past week. While it’s nothing groundbreaking, it’s enough to give the series a second chance (a la Dollhouse). Things look even better if 24 doesn’t return.

If you’re still wondering what’s going to happen to your favorite show because it wasn’t on the list, chances are its fate has been decided and it’s not “on the bubble” like the shows listed here.  Although, if you want a hint, The Deep End will not be sticking around ABC that much longer.

So, does it look like your favorite show is going to make it? Did I miss any show that you’re curious about?

Talk, debate, fight… that’s what the comments are for.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

It was an explosive opening to DC Comics’ Human Target as we’re introduced to Christopher Chance (Mark Valley) whose put himself in the middle of a hostage situation to protect the CEO of a company.

We’re basically introduced to his calculating ability to size up a situation/hostile and engage him successfully. Later on we meet his partner Winston (Chi McBride) and an associate of questionable repute, Guerrero (Jackie Earle Haley) – they form a security firm known for their ability to protect a client and remove the threat.

The episode takes place on a high speed bullet train, protecting the woman behind the project, played by Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica).

My Take On The Show

I would really like to see this Mark Valley-starring project succeed, but none of the characters really grabbed me in this early stage of the game via the premiere. But I have to sit back and wait – I never liked a premiere that throws every bit of a character’s history at you in a single episode.  On the other hand, the premiere episode of Human Target gave me no, or very little, history on any of the characters at all.

Due to the lack of any emotional connection with any of the characters, this premiere episode was just an action flick where we get to watch Christopher Chance and team do their work to get the job done.

The confrontation between Chance and an assassin was interesting.  The choreography had a ton of potential but had strange moments of blatant predictability, though I did enjoy one part of the fight scene in a rather peculiar location.

The Cast

The cast of Human Target is nice but small and I can only assume that they will tack on more regulars as the season carries on (if it carries on).

They need to start showing us something about Chance, Winston and Guerrero.  It should be interesting to delve into Guerrero – played by Haley.  Geurrero feels like a prequel to Watchmen’s Rorschach.

In The End

From what I understand, Human Target’s resemblance to its source material is loose at best and is almost in name only in order to try to generate interest in the series. I can’t help but wonder if this was Fox’s doing or it just is what it is.

As far as liking the show, I’m middle of the road: Don’t hate it but I’ve not been convinced that at this point it’s worth drooling all over myself about.

Next week Christopher Chance will be protecting a client on an airliner.  That ought be interesting.  I Hope.

We’ll see how it develops.

Before 2010 arrived, many of us were sweating one last problem of 2009: the news that Fox and Time Warner Cable had hit a wall in contract negotiations, meaning that Time Warner would drop all Fox stations from its cable programming lineup.

Well, as the ball dropped over Times Square, ringing in “twenty-ten,” I know that I was desperately clicking my remote back to Fox every ten minutes to make sure it was still there. I needn’t have worried though; the situation is has been resolved and (obviously) Time Warner is still broadcasting Fox stations.

The percentage of you who responded to this impending threat by saying “It’ll never happen,” were right on the money. According to Hitflix, a combination of American Idol, college football bowl games and the NFL playoffs provided much of the incentive for the two warring media companies to stop mucking around and work things out – before they both suffered.

I was personally sharpening my tomahawk as New Years approached, ready to cut heads if anybody (or anything) forced me to miss the NFL playoffs. Anyway, here’s what Time Warner Cable Inc. Chief Executive Glenn Britt had to say about the issue: “We’re happy to have reached a reasonable deal with no disruption in programming for our customers…”

The problem started when Fox (surprise, surprise), demanded that Time Warner pay them $1 per cable subscriber each month for the Fox broadcast signal. The move was designed to help Fox capitalize on the kind of revenue streams that subscriber-based cable stations earn in addition to their advertising dollars. Time Warner was trying to hold the line and not raise monthly rates; both parties launched websites promoting their side of the issue; tough-talk ensued… yadda, yadda, yadda… it’s over now.

“Once again, I have come to your rescue…”

No details have yet been released on the nature of the deal that was struck – Time Warner customers, let’s keep a careful eye on our bills in the coming months…

The digital age is still trying to shape itself in many ways, and big media corporations are still trying to figure out how best to make a dollar. Expect more bumps along this winding road before it all gets worked out. For now, though: crisis adverted.

Time Warner customers, are you happy that you still have Fox?

Source: Hitflix

As we all know holidays can be hectic and the last thing you want to worry about is when your favorite TV show is coming back on the air. So, to make sure you’re not left in the dark (like with Fringe and the World Series), we’ve broke it down – geek style – and put together a handy list of Winter premiere and return dates.

The list is organized by network, so all you have to know is where you’ve seen your favorite shows before and you should be able to find them again pretty easily (we made it nice and alphabetical for ya!)

ABC
Better Off Ted (ABC), 9:30 p.m. – Tuesday, Dec. 8
Grey’s Anatomy returns (ABC), 9 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14
Lost (ABC), 9 p.m. – Tuesday, Feb. 2
Private Practice returns (ABC), 10 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14
Scrubs (ABC), 9 p.m. – Tuesday, Dec. 1

CBS
Accidentally on Purpose returns (CBS), 8:30 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11
The Big Bang Theory returns (CBS), 9:30 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11
Criminal Minds returns (CBS), 9 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 13
CSI returns (CBS), 9 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14
CSI: Miami returns (CBS), 10 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11
CSI: NY returns (CBS), 10 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 13
Gary Unmarried returns (CBS), 8:30 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 13
Ghost Whisperer returns (CBS), 8 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 8
The Good Wife (CBS), 10 p.m. – Tuesday, Jan. 5
How I Met Your Mother returns (CBS), 8 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11
Medium returns (CBS), 9 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 8
The Mentalist returns (CBS), 10 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14
NCIS (CBS), 8 p.m. – Tuesday, Jan. 5
NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS), 9 p.m. – Tuesday, Jan. 5
The New Adventures of Old Christine returns (CBS), 8 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 13
Numb3rs returns (CBS), 10 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 8
Two and a Half Men returns (CBS), 9 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11

The CW
Life UneXpected (CW), 9 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 18
Gossip Girl returns (CW), 9 p.m. – Monday, March 8
One Tree Hill returns (CW), 8 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 18
Smallville returns (CW), 8 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 22
Supernatural returns (CW), 9 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 21
The Vampire Diaries returns (CW), 8 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14

NBC
Chuck (NBC), 9 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 10
Heroes returns (NBC), 9 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 11
The Office returns (NBC), 9 p.m. – Thursday, Feb. 4
Parks and Recreation returns (NBC), 8:30 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14

FOX
24 (Fox), 9 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 17
American Dad returns (Fox), 9:30 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 31
Bones returns (Fox), 8 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14
The Cleveland Show returns (Fox), 8:30 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 31
Family Guy returns (Fox), 9 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 31
Fringe returns (Fox), 9 p.m. (for four weeks, then off until April) – Thursday, Jan. 14
Glee returns (Fox), 9 p.m. – Tuesday, April 13
Human Target (Fox), 8 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 17
The Simpsons returns (Fox), 8 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 31
Sons of Tucson (Fox), 8:30 p.m. – Sunday, March 14
Past Life (Fox), 8 p.m. – Thursday, Feb. 11

FX
Archer (FX), 10 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 14

HBO
Big Love (HBO), 10 p.m. – Sunday, Jan. 10
Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO), 9 p.m. – Friday, Feb. 19

SHOWTIME
La La Land (Showtime), 11 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 25
Nurse Jackie (Showtime), 10 p.m. – Monday, March 22
The Tudors (Showtime), 9 p.m. – Sunday, April 11
Secret Diary of a Call Girl (Showtime), 10 p.m. – Monday, Jan. 25
United States of Tara (Showtime), 10:30 p.m. – Monday, March 22

STARZ
Spartacus (Starz), 10 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 22

SYFY
Alice (Syfy), 9 p.m. – Sunday, Dec. 6
Caprica (Syfy), 9 p.m. – Friday, Jan. 22

Don’t forget Southland is now on TNT…

TNT
The Closer returns (TNT), 9 p.m. – Monday, Dec. 7
Leverage returns (TNT), 10 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 13
Men of a Certain Age (TNT), 10 p.m. – Monday, Dec. 7
Southland (TNT), 10 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 12

USA
Burn Notice returns (USA), 10 p.m. – Thursday, Jan. 21
Psych returns (USA), 10 p.m. – Wednesday, Jan. 27
White Collar returns (USA), 10 p.m. – Tuesday, Jan. 19

I can’t believe I have to wait over another month before I get my fix of Burn Notice and Supernatural. Although, I have a feeling that it’ll be worth it.

What about you? Any shows that you’re looking forward to? Am I missing any?

Source: E! Online

Fox released their midseason schedule for their 2009-2010 season.  The list includes shows continuing on and premieres of shows slated for their midseason premiere dates.  Below is the complete schedule, but of note are some of our favorite shows.

24

24 starts its 2-Night / 4-Hour Season Premiere on Sunday January 17th and concludes on Monday the 18th.  24’s regular air day will be Monday’s.

Human Target

The show I’m most looking forward to is Human Target, when it has a series preview on Sunday Jan 17th just before 24.  It will premiere on Wednesday, January 20th where it will air regularly.

Glee

Glee kicks it in gear in its time period premiere on Tuesday, April 13th.

Fringe

Fringe’s winter finale is on Feb 4th and will premiere again on April 1st.

Dollhouse

January 8th we’ll get all new episodes of Dollhouse and it will have its series finale on January 29th.

You might notice Lie To Me isn’t in the list below… don’t worry.  It returns in the late spring.

Below is the press release schedule:

MONDAY

Monday, Jan. 4:

7:30 PM-CC ET TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL (LIVE)

Monday, Jan. 18:

8:00-10:00 PM 24 (2-Night / 4-Hour Season Premiere, Part 2)

Mondays, beginning Jan. 25:

8:00-9:00 PM HOUSE

9:00-10:00 PM 24 (Time Period Premiere)

****************************

TUESDAY

Tuesday, Jan. 5:

7:30 PM-CC ET FEDEX ORANGE BOWL (LIVE)

Tuesday, Jan. 12:

8:00-10:00 PM AMERICAN IDOL (Season Premiere, Part 1)

Tuesdays, beginning Jan. 19:

8:00-9:00 PM AMERICAN IDOL (Time Period Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM OUR LITTLE GENIUS (Time Period Premiere)

Tuesdays, beginning April 13:

8:00-9:00 PM AMERICAN IDOL

9:00-10:00 PM GLEE (Time Period Premiere)

***************************

WEDNESDAY

Wednesday, Jan. 13:

8:00-9:00 PM AMERICAN IDOL (Season Premiere, Part 2)

9:00-10:00 PM OUR LITTLE GENIUS (Series Premiere)

Wednesdays, beginning Jan. 20:

8:00-9:00 PM AMERICAN IDOL

9:00-10:00 PM HUMAN TARGET (Series Premiere)

***************************

THURSDAY

Thursdays, beginning Jan. 14 (no change to lineup):

8:00-9:00 PM BONES (All-New Episodes)

9:00-10:00 PM FRINGE (All-New Episodes)

Thursday, Feb. 4:

8:00-9:00 PM BONES

9:00-10:00 PM FRINGE (Winter Finale)

Thursday, Feb. 11:

8:00-10:00 PM PAST LIFE (Two-Hour Series Premiere)

Thursdays, beginning Feb. 18:

8:00-9:00 PM BONES

9:00-10:00 PM PAST LIFE (Time Period Premiere)

Thursdays, beginning April 1:

8:00-9:00 PM BONES

9:00-10:00 PM FRINGE (Time Period Premiere)

***************************

FRIDAY

Friday, Jan. 1:

8:00 PM-CC ET ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL (LIVE)

Fridays, beginning Jan. 8:

8:00-9:00 PM BONES (Encore Episodes)

9:00-10:00 PM DOLLHOUSE (All-New Episodes)

Friday, Jan. 22:

8:00-9:00 PM BONES (Encore Episode)

9:00-10:00 PM DOLLHOUSE (Series Finale)

Fridays, beginning Jan. 29:

8:00-9:00 PM HOUSE (Encore Episodes)

9:00-10:00 PM KITCHEN NIGHTMARES (Season Premiere)

**************************

SATURDAY

Saturdays (no change to lineup):

8:00-8:30 PM COPS

8:30-9:00 PM COPS

9:00-10:00 PM AMERICA’S MOST WANTED

11:00 PM-Midnight THE WANDA SYKES SHOW

Midnight-12:30 AM SIT DOWN, SHUT UP

***************************

SUNDAY

Sunday, Jan. 10:

8:00-8:30 PM THE SIMPSONS (450th Milestone Episode)

8:30-9:30 PM THE SIMPSONS 20TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL: IN 3-D! ON ICE!

9:30-10:00 PM THE CLEVELAND SHOW

Sunday, Jan. 17:

4:00 PM-CC ET NFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF (LIVE)

8:00-9:00 PM HUMAN TARGET (Series Preview)

9:00-11:00 PM 24 (2-Night / 4-Hour Season Premiere, Part 1)

Sunday, Jan. 24:

6:00 PM-CC ET NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (LIVE)

Sundays, beginning Jan. 31 (no change to lineup):

8:00-8:30 PM THE SIMPSONS (All-New Episodes)

8:30-9:00 PM THE CLEVELAND SHOW (All-New Episodes)

9:00-9:30 PM FAMILY GUY (All-New Episodes)

9:30-10:00 PM AMERICAN DAD (All-New Episodes)

Sunday, March 14:

8:00-8:30 PM THE SIMPSONS

8:30-9:00 PM SONS OF TUCSON (Series Premiere)

9:00-9:30 PM FAMILY GUY

9:30-10:00 PM THE CLEVELAND SHOW (Time Period Premiere)

***************************

Source: Fox

So it worked once and it developed a devoted following, despite how Fox treated it, so it looks like Fox is trying it again.

Scott Rosenbaum (Producer: Chuck, The Shield) is stepping outside the boundaries he’s made for himself with NBC’s Chuck and is taking a stab at a yet-to-be-named western with a science fiction twist.

Rosenbaum will be producing the show with Warner Bros. TV and Wonderland Sound and Vision studios (McG’s company), the latter of which has a fairly decent list of shows to their credits.  That’s if you count Chuck, Human Target and Supernatural as decent shows. They also produce The OC, but I couldn’t put that in the same sentence with the phrase “decent shows.” Just ain’t our cup of tea here at Screen Rant.

I said sadly, because as much as I am loyal to the memory of Joss Whedon’s Firefly (a great sci-fi/western TV show), I am going to be giving Rosenbaum’s show a look-see once it gets going.

At the moment, we have no other details on the show.  I hope they best tread very carefully on ground already trodden, because you know for a fact that the fan base of Joss Whedon and other editorial entertainment writers will be comparing it to Firefly.  Not that Firefly has the sole market on sci-fi westerns, but it’s the most popular template for comparison.

Source:  Geeks of Doom

After the Disney/Marvel merger DC Comics and longtime-partner Warner Bros. had to be shaking in their boots. “The House of the Mouse” is already looking like a force that few will likely be able to reckon with.

Well, in an effort to become one of those few forces able to take on Disney/Marvel, Nikke Finke reports that Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. has launched a new division, DC Entertainment Inc., in order to better expand the DC Brand.

Marvel fanboys have already been having heart palpitations wondering what the fate of their favorite characters will be in the hands of Disney. Now DC fans can officially share in that anxiety.

Diane Nelson will be the lady in charge of DC Entertainment Inc., as announced yesterday by Warner Bros. CEO Barry Meyer, and COO, Alan Horn. The mission statement of DC Entertainment Inc. will be to “strategically integrate the DC Comics business, brand and characters deeply into Warner Bros. Entertainment and all its content and distribution businesses.” Basically that constitutes Warner Bros. taking a more hands-on approach to developing DC Comic properties into successful film and TV franchises, interactive and new platform media, etc. In the midst of all this, DC Comics will remain as is for the most part, serving as the creative cornerstone of DC Entertainment Inc.

Of course this new structure means that DC’s comic book division has officially become a limb on a much larger body. As a result, Paul Levitz, President & Publisher of DC Comics since 2002, will vacate his exec post and return to a writing position, lending his three decades of experience to the “new DC” as a contributing editor and consultant.

Said Levitz:

“After so many roles at DC, it’s exciting to look forward to focusing on my writing and being able to remain a part of the company I love as it grows into its next stage. It’s a new golden age for comics and DC’s great characters, and I hope my new position will allow me to contribute to that magic time.”

Diane Nelson (Click Image for Source)

Nelson is leaving her post as President of Warner Premiere to take on the DC Entertainment job. If you’re wondering about her qualifications and experience: in her two decades working in creative brand management, strategic marketing and content development and production, Nelson has most notably had a big hand in adapting and managing the Harry Potter franchise for WB. Taking J.K. Rowling’s beloved novels and turning them into a juggernaut (read: cash cow) movie franchise is no small accomplishment; IMO, it demonstrates that Nelson understands how to maintain the balance between being true to source material, while making the needed changes to create successful multimedia ventures – an area where DC has admittedly had some trouble (See: Superman Returns).

Said Nelson:

“The founding of DC Entertainment fully recognizes our desire to provide both the DC properties and fans the type of content that is only possible through a concerted cross-company, multi-platform effort…DC Entertainment will help us to formally take the great working relationships between DC Comics and various Warner Bros. businesses to the next level in order to maximize every opportunity to bring DC’s unrivalled collection of titles and characters to life.”

For a great in-depth explanation of all this (with more quotes from the players involved) head on over to Deadline Hollywood.

Personally, I’m not at all upset (or surprised, really) about any of this. For better or worse, comic book fans, these are chicks we raised that are coming home to roost. We were the ones who pushed for so long to see our favorite heroes grace the big and small screens; our money fed the box office and gave rise to the “Era of Geek-Chic.” And in that proud era, our favorite comic books and superheroes have had their market value shoot WAY up – they are now worldwide icons and potential cash cows. When you think about it like that, it’s only logical that the big dawgs have come a barkin’ and comic book publishers have had to answer the call by stepping up into the corporate big leagues.

But will the source material – our beloved comic books – survive and flourish under these bright neon corporate banners, or whither and be forever tainted? As the zen master says “We shall see…”

What do you think about the creation of DC Entertainment Inc.? Will it be a good way for DC to catch up to Marvel in the multimedia market, or are you DC fans worrying that this is the end of the age of innocence for your beloved universe?

(And be sure to check our list of tags below to know which DC/WB movies are currently in the pipeline . Will this re-structuring affect them too?)

Source: Deadline Hollywood

UpDated 7-2-09

Last year at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con, the event was ruled by several big named movies that ranged from youthful vampires to illegal vigilantes.  TV was more a side-note than anything else.

This year at the 2009 Comic-Con, things will be a bit different as television programming seems to have a bigger presence than last year.

For instance, the Warner Brothers Television Group will have 11 different panels for their shows.  That’s a studio best for them.  ABC Studios will have 7 panels.  20th Century Fox will have 9 panels.

Do you think your favorite television show will be represented?

This year, I’m ready…  I hope.  So in preparation, I’ve started sifting through the network press releases and other resources, pulling it all together for myself.  I decided…  OK, maybe I was nudged a bit by Vic, to actually put it all prep info together here, for you, our loyal readers.

I’m done chatting.  Let’s take a look at what television panels are lined up for the 2009 San Diego Comic Con.

.

Wednesday Evening, July 22nd:

6-9 p.m.:
Warner Brothers Television will be airing pilot previews this evening for the early-arriving crowd.

Human Target, V and The Vampire Diaries are the shows being previewed on this evening.

.

Thursday, July 23rd:

Burn Notice, Time To Be Determined (TTBD)
This panel will feature Bruce Campbell and writers from the series.

Legend of the Seeker, TTBD

Psych, TTBD

5-6 p.m.: Dexter

8 p.m. – Special Screening – Green Lantern [UPDATED]
Catch a special screening of the 5th DVD in the Green Lantern series, titled Green Lantern: First Flight. It will have it’s world premiere in Ballroom 20.  That’s 5 days before it’s released to DVD!

Continue to the next page for Friday’s schedule

Fox’s newest show, Human Target, is about a body guard named Christopher Chance who privately contracts out to clients to guard them from dangerous threats. He’s hired when normal measures are no longer effective.

Human Target first showed up in comic books in 1972 under the Action Comics title and later became its own comic book and graphic novel.  The original version of Human Target had him impersonate his clients.

Now Fox has taken the franchise a step further and has ordered some episodes for the 2009 / 2010 season.

In Fox’s version, Chance assumes nondescript positions that keeps him close to his client.

Check it out:

Human Target will be executive produced by Jon Steinberg (Jericho), McG (Terminator 5, Supernatural, Chuck), & Brad Kern (Charmed, Lois & Clark).  Co-executive producer Peter Johnson (Chuck, Supernatural), directed (and executive producer) Simon West (Con Air, When A Stranger Calls, Black Hawk Down)

The writer tagged for the show is Jon Steinberg (Jericho).

I think the cast has potential.  Mark Valley (Fringe, Boston Legal) plays Christopher Chance.  Jackie Earle Haley (Watchmen, A Nightmare on Elm Street) plays Guerrero and Chi McBride (Pushing Daisies) plays Winston.

If this show is handled properly, judging from the power house creative forces on either side of the camera, this could be juicy good.

Human Target is the newest action thriller premiering on Fox with a special preview on Sunday, January 17, 2010.  What does everyone think?  Are you looking forward to checking out this new show like I am?

Background source:  Wikipedia, Image source: Fox

Former child star Jackie Earl Haley (most recently known for portraying Rorschach in Zach Snyder’s Watchmen) has been cast to co-star in the up and coming Fox series Human Target.  Haley will be joined by co-star and Pushing Daisies alum, Chi McBride.

Human Target is based on the DC comic of the same name about an enigmatic freelancer, Christopher Chance (Mark Valley), who provides a very specialized form of personal security by assuming the identity of his client in order to shield them from harm.  Thereby becoming the literal “human target.”

Haley is tapped to play Chance’s contact and information gatherer.  McBride will play Chance’s business partner and friend.  This will be another Warner Brothers project for both.

This week we have news on new shows that FOX has ordered, a bit of news on Dead Like Me, we touch on some House info and more on yet more guest appearances on E.R..

In the confused department, I’ve got some news sort of related to Smallville, and we chat about Ugly Betty getting dumped temporarily.

We wrap it up with a little bit of new news for our overseas readers on a new set of episodes of Red Dwarf.  Let’s get on with it!

1. FOX Network ordered itself a bunch of pilots. Four comedies and three dramas. Of the three dramas, two of them are of the sci-fi genre.

One is Human Target, based on the DC Comics title about a man for hire whose job is to assume the role of people who find themselves in life threatening situations. John Steinberg writes the scripts and is executive producing alongside McG.

The other project is untitled at this time, but focuses on past-life investigators using the concept of reincarnation to solve present day crimes. Source: THR.com

2. For the Dead Like Me fans, a direct-to-DVD movie is being released on February 17th, 2009 titled Dead Like Me: Life After Death.

I’ve always found the show interesting and wouldn’t mind catching a full length movie version. Of course after watching a movie, I would probably end up wanting more. Source: TVShowsOnDVD

3. In case you missed the news and missed the show, House has moved to Monday nights. (SPOILER) Later this season Gregory House and Cuddy will, um, well… you know, they um, well… they “hit it” off pretty good, if you know what I mean. Of course the creators of House warn us that even though House and Cuddy settle into the sheets together, they’re going to do this the only way it can be done, House style. Sigh. Source: EW.com, Image: FOX

4. As Niall reported a few days ago regarding George Clooney returning for a reprisal of his role of Doug Ross on E.R., Julianna Margulies is following suit and also reprising her role as Hathaway on the final season of E.R. on NBC.  Source: ET Online.

There are also some rumors that Susan Sarandon will be appearing in the same episode with Clooney.  Source: E Online.

5. First it’s good news, then it’s not. I can’t decide if The CW really knows what’s up.

In the process of getting a reboot of Melrose Place up and running, The CW is talking to Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin about helming the Melrose effort. Yes, the same Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin who are 2 of the 4 show-runners for Smallville.

If for some reason they move on to tackle Melrose Place, that would leave Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson as the executive producers for the 9th season of Smallville. It’s being reported that Warner Bros is finalizing deals with the cast for a 9th season.

So my question to you would be what do you think would happen to the quality of the show if they split up this four-some?  Source: EW.com,

6. It’s been thought that ABC’s Ugly Betty was their workhorse signature series, yet they’re shelving the show starting March 26th in favor of Samantha Who?, and then In The Motherhood. claiming that the Thursday night time slot is a great spot to launch these shows.

According to ABC, Ugly Betty will return after these two shows run their set number of episodes.  Though the network is not saying when the show will return, by some calculations, it should probably air sometime in June.  The dreaded summertime slot. Source: EW.com.

7.  Channel Dave is a network over in the UK.  If you have access to the network, and you’re a fan of Red Dwarf, then you are in for a treat.  Red Dwarf is returning with a brand new two-part series.  Dave Lister gets to return home!

Red Dwarf: Back to Earth starts filming their two-part episode in February.

Over the Easter weekend, four new episodes will come at you.  After the two episodes of Back to Earth, prepare yourself for Red Dwarf: Unplugged.  Unplugged will have no sets, no effects and egads, no cue cards!  Then you get to watch Red Dwarf: The Making of Back to Earth.  Source: Dave TV.

]]> http://screenrant.com/weekly-tv-wrap-jan-29-2009-brusimm-5175/feed/ 11