Phil Klemmer, who once wrote for Veronica Mars, is now writing for Chuck. Asked to describe the show in an interview with Television Without Pity:

Well, I was sort of pitching it to my parents as Mr. And Mrs. Smith meets The Office. … But you know, the thing that really appealed to me from the page, and now, is it’s got, you know, a pair of guy friends at the center of the show, Chuck and Morgan, and that’s a dynamic that’s always been a huge part of my life, from actual adolescent relationships with my friends, to sort of, now that I’m an adult, maintaining the adolescent quality of those, that sort of humor, and certain levels of interaction…

While most of NBCs overt push has been their tag “He’s the secret, she’s the agent” most of the things I’ve read that involve Zachary Levi and the creators have actually talked a lot about Chuck and Morgan and their friendship. So which is going to be the real focus of the show? Or are they going to be able to actually have a balance? Does Morgan really become his partner in crime, or is he going to be the guy that stays at home?

The interview is also fascinating for all the talk of Veronica Mars, the process of getting a job writing television, and all the young guys in the writing room. It’s long but well worth a read. He also discusses how he thought the large budget for Chuck would save him from the problems he faced on Veronica Mars, which leads to my favorite quote:
” But I just thought we’d be rolling in money and be like, ‘Oh, we’ll fix it in post!’”

This post was Authored by Elizabeth, Our Resident Authority on all things Chuck

This site is about TV, opinions and logically…opinions about TV! Much has been made in the off season about the changes behind the scenes at NCIS, namely the furor between Mark Harmon and Creator/Producer Donald P. Bellasario who is now toast and out of the picture. Reports from TV Guide and the like detail how calm, peaceful and happy the set is now that Bellasario is gone. I am glad for them, I truly am, but what does this mean for the viewer?

I ask this because in this week leading up to Tuesday night’s season premiere of the “new and improved, peaceful, calm and happy” NCIS, I decided to take in the season finale of last season’s NCIS which leads up to next week’s episode. As I watched the opening credits I noticed the “written by Donald P. Bellasario” credit and remembered that Bellasario not only created and produced the show but wrote a great deal of the episodes (much like he did previously on J.A.G. and Quantum Leap.) Yes, he had a fine writing staff (who thankfully are now caretakers of the show) but it is evident that for all the frustration he created with hodge-podge management and late scripts, Bellasario did steer the storyline week to week.

Then, watching that very season finale, I realized what an engrossing and carefully crafted storyline had been played out through season four, a storyline that is intended to come to its resolution in the season five premiere. And there is the red flag! It’s impossible to know whether the original intention was to wrap everything up in the season premiere or if this is just a way to clear up last season’s cliffhanger so we can move on without Bellasario’s input. I’d like to think that everything we had built up to last year would have some lasting impact on the characters and not be something so simple as to be able to conclude it all in an hour. NCIS pulled itself up to Top 20 show status in the last 4 years and I hope that a “Bellasario-free” version retains what made the show click with viewers.

I am hopeful and I’ll be tuned in next Tuesday, but it had better be good…there’s a lot of stuff to watch on Tuesdays!!!

This post was Authored by Rob Walley, Our Resident Authority on all things NCIS and Kitchen Nightmares

There is a long history of television shows that originated in the United Kingdom and then made the jump to American airwaves. For most of that history, the show idea was reworked for American audiences and, and in the end, barely resembled its British kin. This began to change in the last decade with the attempt to tie American productions closer to their overseas counterparts and the debut of BBC America. An examination of the truly great American television that we can attribute to the British would take dozens of columns.

The next chapter in this process could be Gordon Ramsay, who has wisely remained the center of both his British production as well as his American one. While Ramsay left the British Hell’s Kitchen after its first season, the American version is much closer to his original vision of the show (which he detailed in his autobiography “Roasting In Hell’s Kitchen.”) The UK’s “Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares” has always been the Ramsay production that I most enjoyed, because I believe that it was here that we were seeing the “real” Gordon Ramsay instead of the caricature of him on “Hell’s Kitchen.”

So, while it has been evident here on this page that I have been excited about the premiere of the American version of “Kitchen Nightmares,” I will now admit that I also had a great deal of worry about it as well. American television has a way of dumbing down British series and making them not worth our time or attention. Happily, this is not the case with FOX’s “Kitchen Nightmares.” The show has wisely maintained the formula and structure of its predecessor, albeit with a distinctive American flavor. In addition, Ramsay decided not to begin with an easy project, instead jumping in head-first into a restaurant fiasco that rivals any show on the UK version; an Italian family owned eatery where the older brother runs the place like something out of “The Godfather.”

Is it as good as its English brethren? Almost.

One of the best parts of the British version of “Kitchen Nightmares” is when Ramsay returns weeks (sometimes months) later to see if his changes stuck. We really didn’t see anything like this in the premiere episode and I gather that we won’t in future episodes. While I initially saw this as a major omission on FOX’s part, I am beginning to think that this may have been on purpose, providing FOX the perfect opportunity to air a “very special” episode later in the season allowing Ramsay an entire evening to slice and dice his past endeavors. This could be a great sweeps month stunt that could generate buzz for the show long after its newness has worn off.

For now, “Kitchen Nightmare’s” is the show I hoped it would be and has left me salivating for next week’s episode!

This post was Authored by Rob Walley, Our Resident Authority on all things NCIS and Kitchen Nightmares

Close to the beginning of season two of Supernatural we were introduced to an interesting, but in a way psychotic hunter named Gordon Dean. Well, he is returning for season three in at least two episodes in the first half of the season. I wasn’t much of a fan of Gordon Dean, but after rewatching the episodes that he was in, I find him interesting. He is so obsessed with the job and purging evil that sometimes he can’t even see what is evil and what isn’t. What I like about him is that he truly believes that all supernatural beings are evil and so he’s going to try to stop them all. I’m not going to give away the plot for the two episodes that he will be in (so far), but the last one seems very interesting. Time is drawing nearer for the season premier.

What did you guys think about Gordon Dean? Did you like him or don’t care to see another episode with him?

This post was Authored by Dannylion, Our Resident Authority on all things Supernatural

NBC is really pushing Chuck as their new hit, all the way to putting Zachary Levi, the star, as a guest on The View on ABC.

Monday, Sep. 24
Jimmy Smits (Cane); Senator Joe Biden (author, Promises to Keep); Zachary Levi (Chuck)”

That’s just an odd set of guests. I don’t watch The View, so I don’t know what sort of format they have. I’ve heard that if you want to catch Levi, you should tune into the last half of the show.

I can’t figure out why they would be promoting Chuck on The View. It seems to be a show aimed at younger men, with plenty of interest for the geek girls.

Maybe this is part of their attempts to get women to watch, which again annoys me. The girls I know who are likely to watch Chuck wouldn’t watch The View. The only time they see that particular show is when The Soup gives us clips to poke fun at. What is the demographic for The View? Would they be interested in Chuck at all?

I suppose it’s a less annoying move than the commercial that is just people saying, “Chuck!” over and over again. I hate that commercial, it actually makes me less interested in the show.

Only a few more days until it airs, however! If there is anybody left who hasn’t already watched it through the million different ways NBC released the pilot.

This post was Authored by Elizabeth, Our Resident Authority on all things Chuck

The Father of Flannel himself has stepped down from his throne in the modest prairie ranch paradise called Skywalker Ranch to talk about the future of Star Wars. TV.

Scifi says:

Lucas said that there are a hundred episodes planned for the series, half of which should be completed before the first one airs. Lucas and his company are aiming to premiere the series in the fall of 2008 but are still considering where it would fit best on the broadcast schedule. “So far, everybody’s got the same conundrums,” he said. “‘How do we program it? Where does it live? Where can we put something like this?’ You know, it has to go after 9 o’clock and it can’t be on a kiddie channel.”

Lucas is also working on a live-action series for television and said that he expects to be writing it about a month from now. The series will be set in the Star Wars universe between Episode III and Episode IV and will feature minor characters from the films.

Even in that vast gap of nothingness between the end of the Star Wars movies in the 80s and the revival in the 90s we have always been tagged along with tastes of every corner of the Star Wars universe. Mostly smatterings revolving around Droids and Ewoks with some live action movies in there too. In this crazy paced media world we now have, they kept our appetites whet with the Clone Wars series.

I am excited to see how a new animated series would turn out especially with this revelation that it will be very edgy and adult. Surely not for kids. I think this excludes a fair bit of their audience, but will give a more adult look at the Star Wars universe for us grownups who were there when the movies first came out. Much of the complaints about the prequels revolved around silly fluff characters (JarJar) and that it was a series of commercials to sell toys. This news seems to resolve those issues which spells good things to me.

I am even more hyped about a live action TV show. With the money Lucas has to put behind a project like this, we could see something written as well as Battlestar Galactica but set in a Star Wars Universe. I just pray it gets done right!!

This post was Authored by Rodney Brazeau, Senior Editor for the TVShow Blog and Our Resident Authority on all things Heroes and Smallville

NBC and Clear Channel have struck a deal to turn five of their stations into “CHUCK-FM” according to Business Wire

Also in these markets, from 6:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m., stars of a new NBC fall show “Chuck” are taking over the airwaves to discuss their new show. During these hours, all five stations will refer to themselves as “Chuck-FM,” and Zach Levi and Josh Gomez (who play Chuck and Morgan respectively) will introduce all station content reports (news, traffic, weather, sports) with no other commercial breaks or advertisers running concurrently.

The stations involved are: WHTZ-FM (Z100) in New York, KIIS-FM in Los Angeles, KYLD-FM in San Francisco, WKSC-FM in Chicago, and WIOQ-FM in Philadelphia

For the entire day on September 24th, those five stations will air nothing but NBC ads, as well as extra content like vignettes and exclusive content, mostly focusing on Chuck and Journeyman.

The lines of advertising are blurring more every day. Product placement is getting headlines, everybody is talking about how to reach people in new and innovative ways. Is this the first of a new trend? Television has allowed single sponsors to “take over” a program with them before, so it seems natural for radio to do the same. But will viewers respond to it at all? Specifically when you consider that September 24th is the day that Chuck is set to premiere. Is that getting the word out in time, or catering to people who are already planning to watch the show?

And how much money did this cost NBC? I imagine it must have been a tidy sum. All I know is I’m very happy I don’t live in any of the five markets. I subscribe to satellite radio to get away from obnoxious ads that play repeatedly, so I know this particular campaign would make me less likely to watch.

This post was Authored by Elizabeth, Our Resident Authority on all things Chuck

Kevin Connolly will be hanging up his alter ego Eric Murphy to play the legendary King of Swing Benny Goodman in a yet to be titled film.

Connolly had the following to say about learning to dance and faking the clarinet in an interview on nypost.com:

The good thing about the clarinet is you only have to look like you know how to play…I still have to learn how to dance and they’ll be playing the music in the background.

Musician biopics are quite popular, and I’m looking forward to seeing Connolly become Goodman. He wouldn’t be the first Entourage cast member to play a famous musician, though. Kevin Dillon played The Doors’ John Densmore in Oliver Stone’s 1990s flick. If you could cast any other Entourage cast member in a musician biopic, whom would you select, and which famous musician would they play?

This post was Authored by Melissa, Our Resident Authority on all things Entourage

Though the wonderful BSG won best special effects or some such at the Emmy’s last night, Eureka still has a big week ahead (It was an honor just to be nominated!).

Last week, Phoenix Rising launched things on Space and last Tuesday’s God is in the Details got big for SciFi ratings!

According to www.VisitEureka.net,

“The latest episode of Eureka scored a superb 1.8 HH rating, which is the highest of the season since the season premiere on July 10″

Scifi.com also has Eureka listed as it’s second highest rated show behind WWE Raw

Tonight on Space @ 10EST, Try, Try Again will air. The episode is one of the few this season that features Allison in a pivotal role. For some reason this season there’s a lot more Fargo and a lot less Allison. Hrmph. I am glad that the Powers that Be didn’t just push the reset button on last season, but I shed little tears for the Carter/ Blake future.

And on SciFi Channel tomorrow night @ 9EST, Maneater airs guest starring the lovely Mrs. Michael Shanks- Lexa Doig!

I have been staying away from spoilers, but the teaser looks like Maneater will be Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered meets an episode from each and every incarnation of Star Trek.

So with all the possible affections Carter will have directed toward him tomorrow night, is anyone else sad- like me! - at the seeming dissolution of any hope for Jack and Allison? Is anyone else kinda bored with the non entity of Kevin and his seeming status as master of the known universe?

But even with my dissatisfaction with those plot points, I have truly enjoyed the evolution of Jack and Zoe’s relationship while I continue to love every single minute of Joe Morton’s (Henry Deacon) fine performances- though I can’t understand what Henry could possibly hope to gain by teaming up with Stark. Please comment and lets converse.
Live|Smart Eureka!

This post was Authored by TaraLeigh- Missouri mommy loving all geeky things SCIFI, especially Eureka!

After a completely terrible Emmy night in my opinion (Ryan Seacrest sucked, no one I liked won an award, and the travesty of 30’s Rock winning an Emmy), the only bright spot of the evening was Katherine Heigl winning an Emmy for best supporting actress in a drama series.

You could tell how surprised Heigl was because she mouthed “shit” as her name was being announced. She lightly joked that she hadn’t prepared a speech because “My own mother told me that I didn’t have a shot in hell of winning tonight.” Her whole demeanor was just so sweet, fun, cute, and deserving.

Her portrayal of Izzie Stevens in this season was excellent and deserved an Emmy. I felt that Izzie grew and matured throughout the season, and Heigl had some tough scenes to deal with. She beat out many other wonderful actresses to receive the award and she looked great doing it. She picked out her Zac Posen dress. It was so nice seeing an actress win an award she really earned.

Are you happy that Heigl won an Emmy or did you think someone else should have got one?

This post was Authored by Angela Riley, Our Resident Authority on all things Grey’s Anatomy

Well, I’ve finally been able to find a news story that mentions “Moonlight.” And the mention doesn’t bode well. The article “Media buying experts weigh the 2007-08 season” on the
Hollywood Reporter states that:

Producers worked into the 11th hour to retool CBS’ vampire drama, “Moonlight,” which the analysts consider an ominous sign. Quips Brill, ‘Can I say this vampire show bites?’

I’m starting to wonder if this show is even going to make it to its premiere date because all of the press that I’ve been able to find on it has not been positive at all.

Is anyone else starting to get worried about this show?

This post was Authored by Emily Hanson, Our Resident Authority on all things Moonlight

In one of the biggest upsets of the night, James Gandolfini misses out on his final chance at Emmy glory for “The Sopranos” to James Spader of “Boston Legal.” “I feel like I just stole a pile of money from the mob and they’re sitting right over there,” Spader said at the ceremony.

A full list of winners and losers can be found here.

This is the 3rd Emmy James Spader has received for portraying the often ethically challenged Alan Shore. He previous wins came in 2005 for “Boston Legal” and in 2004 when portrayed the same character on “The Practice.”

Spader is great on Legal, but I would have had a hard time voting for him over Gandolfini. Is James Spader really more deserving than James Gandolfini.? Whether he is or not you can catch the newly minted Emmy winner along with Denny Crane in a special 90-minute premiere following the “Dancing with the Stars” premiere September 25.

This post was Authored by Blake Jones, Our Resident Authority on all things Boston Legal

Allow me to blow my horn once again for Kitchen Nightmares as this week marks the unofficial start of the 2007 Season and Kitchen Nightmares debuts Wednesday night on FOX.

Variety gives the show a very promising “preview” here:

A simple premise, here: London restaurateur and “Hell’s Kitchen” sage Gordon Ramsay goes into troubled restaurants, shifts some duties, changes the menu and has some one-on-one sitdowns to get these eateries operating like Michelin three-star joints. Producers could not script more drama, or stereotypes, than at the family-run Long Island Italian restaurant featured in the premiere. Editors were clearly thrilled with what they were given — verbal explosions, potential fisticuffs, bill collectors, the bratty brother in charge and the silent hard-working sister who actually owns the place. “Kitchen Nightmares” is shockingly good storytelling and hilarious. This may be the most compelling show of the new season.

To bring you up to speed, Kitchen Nightmare’s is an American version of “Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares” which originated in the UK. BBC America airs reruns of the UK show several times a week. I love this shows UK version and can’t wait for Wednesday night’s US version premiere. From the description above and the few previews that FOX has shown, it looks to be a much more volatile version than the British one! This should suit Gordon Ramsay quite well.

This post was Authored by Rob Walley, Our Resident Authority on all things NCIS and Kitchen Nightmares

With the start of season two only a couple weeks away (Friday, October 5th) it’s time to take a peak at some of the rumours that are circling about our friends in Dillon Texas. Desertnews.com posted an article with information about the season, ranging from official to rumour.

They explain,

When the series returns, Tami is in labor, which brings Eric home from Austin. (As with Season 1, Season 2 will cover a high school football season, so it’s been eight months of “FNL” time since the first-season finale.)… Coach Taylor has been replaced at Dillon High. A new coach (Chris Mulkey) has been hired to lead the Panthers as they defend their state title.

The idea of skipping the off season and getting ready back to the football seems like the right choice to me. Airing a season consisting of the off season would make FNL a little bit too much like One Tree Hill, not to mention greatly reduce the football content. As for having a new coach, I’m a little hesitant. This is simply only because of how much I love Taylor. The news article suggests though that the new coach isn’t going to last, and I hope this is true. Obviously the writers need to keep things interesting but I really hope Taylor reprises his role as coach of the Panthers. (to view all of the spoilers follow this link.)

As we gear up for season two what are your hopes and expectations? What are your concerns?

This post was Authored by Cole McFarlane, Our Resident Authority on all things Friday Night Lights

A couple of Saturdays ago, I kept seeing posters with Adrian Grenier’s face everywhere I went. After passing the tenth poster, curiosity struck, and I stopped to see exactly why Vincent Chase was staring at me. It turns out he’s in a band called The Honey Brothers, and they were making their Toronto debut that night at a local nightclub.

I checked out the band and their website, thehoneybrothers.com, where one review described them as an “…infectious blend of zany country-tinged power pop (think of Ween meets Weezer circa the Blue Album).” A friend and I decided we had to see it for ourselves.

The club, Muzik, ended up being the worst possible place to see a live band. It’s an upscale dance club, much like the clubs you’d see on Entourage. Everyone was more preoccupied with drinking and socializing, so I was able to walk right up to the stage and watch Grenier and the rest of the Honey Brothers up close. It was an enjoyable set, and I’d recommend checking them out.

This brings up the topic of actors who moonlight as musicians. Some have done so successfully, some not. Ultimately, I think accomplished actors have so much more to prove when they cross over into music, and it takes a lot for them to be taken seriously. I think it can work, and has worked. Do I think Adrian Grenier should give up acting for music? No. But the Honey Brothers are a good band, and it’s a great way for him to spend the time between seasons of Entourage and film projects. What do you think? Should actors stick to acting, or is it okay to have a musical career as well?

This post was Authored by Melissa, Our Resident Authority on all things Entourage

In case you were under a rock and missed Chris Crocker being elevated to his 15 minutes of fame on YouTube, here is the link. His viral video has been getting more attention than the NumaNuma guy as he has an emotional breakdown in front of his camera in support of Britney Spears in light of the heavy criticisms she has been getting lately.

So leave it to Seth Green to do a parody video.

I like how he uses the video to drop an ad for Robot Chicken near the end. I don’t know that it was about that or about Chris Crocker using this rediculous display to get more attention.

In other videos that follow this outburst Chris Crocker states how hard it is to be going through such a tough time. If he didn’t want this attention maybe some of his video entries would be about other things instead of just the “Leave Britney Alone” video and its fallout. He is only famous BECAUSE of the video, so I hardly think its a bad thing this guy is in the news.

I do sympathize that instead of addressing how humiliating yet self serving this outcry of his was, news sources have resorted to making fun of his outward sexuality and choice to wear makeup. This guy offers plenty to make fun of without resorting to his lifestlye choices.

This post was Authored by Rodney Brazeau, Senior Editor for the TVShow Blog

Rumours run rampant among Heroes fans that off screen buddies Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia (two names I have trouble pronouncing) are secretly “involved”. Not their characters. Them. Consenting adults. Hayden is 18 now, so such activity is permissable, but is it actually happening?

Greg Grunberg clears the air on that and overshares a bit to get off the topic fast.

Considering the two are related ON SCREEN, I have a hard time seeing them as anything but friends off screen. That would be some wierdness.

But you have to love being SO famous that in interviews they ask you about OTHER famous people you work with. It’s great to know they were interested in Greg during this interview shot. I am not surprised to see him shuffle on so quickly afterwards.

This post was Authored by Rodney Brazeau, Copy Editor for the TVShow Blog and Our Resident Authority on all things Heroes and Smallville

Here it is folks, the second episode of the new Doctor Who spin-off series.
And it’s with this one that they want to show us that they’re aimed at an older audience than it’s family-oriented parent series. I mean really, would it be acceptable for an alien that survives on sexual energy to appear in the TARDIS, well maybe in some fan-fiction, but on the air. Probably not.

That’s not the case for Torchwood, and Captain Jack and his crew are in for a hot one this week. Cardiff’s nightlife is thrown a curve when murders start happening, murders tied into sex. And this week, the series has it’s fair share, and isn’t really shy about it. If you’re feeling prudish you may want to skip tonight’s ep, as there’s heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual sex if not entirely seen then blatantly alluded to.

It helps set the tone for the very more adult themed viewing of the series.

It’s not family viewing folks, so please be advised. But I do like that the series isn’t afraid to go dark, gritty, and sexy.

And yes, I will be the first to admit that an alien who survives on sexual energy is a little cheesy, but it’s good cheesy fun if you’re willing to sit back and enjoy it.

That’s my recommendation. If you feel like it’s not your thing, don’t write off the series yet, there’s some really good eps coming down the pipe so stay tuned.

Torchwood airs Saturdays on BBCAmerica.

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

Hey all, seems I’ve been getting ahead of myself with my reviews, as for two weeks, the good Doctor has been preempted by the CBC. This week sees the beginning of the three part series finale with the episode entitled Utopia.

Silly old CBC, I can’t think of one good reason to ever preempt a program like Doctor Who, I couldn’t understand it as a kid, I can’t understand it now.

Doctor Who returns to CBC Monday September 17.

This post was Authored by TD, Our Resident Authority on all things BBC

Chuck star says that the show will be easy to pick up in the middle. According to an interview on TV with MeeVee

You’re going to have a procedural show in there where you can tune in and have a mission of the week…and every sixth episode is going to be a mythology show,” Levi said.

He rightly goes on to say that while he loves Lost, it’s a show that’s almost impossible to pick up in the middle of. So Chuck isn’t going to be like that, instead they’ll do what the early seasons of the X-Files were so good at: mixing monster-of-the-week with mythology plots.

This sounds like a good plan, but it also seems like audiences are leaning more towards shows that require people to tune in every week. Chuck is a lead-in to Heroes, and while you CAN catch up to Heroes, it is a show that is almost entirely “mythology.” In fact, the target audience for Chuck is the same as for Heroes (as the stars and creators have said often) so it’s possible a mission-of-the-week format would turn those viewers away. Science-fiction television fans are notorious for using “of-the-week” as a derogative term.

I personally like a show I can miss an episode of and not have to give up on the entire season. I forgot to watch Lost one week a few years ago, and haven’t seen an episode since because I knew I couldn’t just pick it up again and know what was going on. I missed the boat on Heroes for months until the Sci-Fi Channel had a marathon so I could catch up after forgetting to watch the first couple weeks. But you can’t deny that those shows are getting more and more popular. Which do you prefer?

This post was Authored by Elizabeth, Our Resident Authority on all things Chuck